Saito Hirohisa
National Research Institute for Child Health and Development, Tokyo, Japan.
Chem Immunol Allergy. 2014;100:165-71. doi: 10.1159/000358733. Epub 2014 May 22.
The role of mast cells in allergy remained unrevealed until the observation that they contained histamine in 1953, and then the discovery of immunoglobulin E (IgE) in 1966, nearly a century after Ehrlich's first publication. After the discovery of IgE, myeloma-derived IgE from Peter Shackford, who made a great contribution to mankind by providing 40 liters of plasma in the year prior to his death, was distributed to many researchers. This accelerated the exploration of the mechanisms involved in allergic reactions, especially regarding the role of mast cells in IgE-mediated reactions. The identification of mast cells as a progeny of a bone marrow hematopoietic stem cell in 1977 led us to the successful in vitro culture of mast cells. Along with the development of molecular biological techniques, the structure of the high-affinity IgE receptor (FcεRI) was determined in 1989. Thus, we now understand the whole molecules the expression of which is changed when mast cells are activated via FcεRI cross-linking. However, the physiological and pathological roles of mast cells, especially where IgE is not involved, are not yet fully understood. It will be necessary to determine the mechanisms involved in the 'non-IgE-mediated' steps of mast cell activation in allergic or other diseases.
直到1953年观察到肥大细胞含有组胺，随后在1966年发现免疫球蛋白E（IgE），在埃利希首次发表近一个世纪后，肥大细胞在过敏中的作用才得以揭示。IgE发现后，彼得·沙克福德（Peter Shackford）提供的骨髓瘤衍生IgE被分发给许多研究人员，他在去世前一年为人类贡献了40升血浆，为人类做出了巨大贡献。这加速了对过敏反应相关机制的探索，尤其是肥大细胞在IgE介导反应中的作用。1977年将肥大细胞鉴定为骨髓造血干细胞的后代，使我们成功实现了肥大细胞的体外培养。随着分子生物学技术的发展，1989年确定了高亲和力IgE受体（FcεRI）的结构。因此，我们现在了解了通过FcεRI交联激活肥大细胞时表达发生变化的整个分子。然而，肥大细胞的生理和病理作用，尤其是在不涉及IgE的情况下，尚未完全了解。有必要确定在过敏或其他疾病中肥大细胞激活的“非IgE介导”步骤所涉及的机制。
