Topping M D, Scarisbrick D A, Luczynska C M, Clarke E C, Seaton A
Br J Ind Med. 1985 May;42(5):312-8. doi: 10.1136/oem.42.5.312.
The workforce at a biotechnology plant producing citric acid by fermentation of molasses with a strain of Aspergillus niger was studied. A combination of a respiratory questionnaire and clinical assessment identified 18 subjects (4.9% of the workforce) with work related bronchospasm. In nine of these evidence of sensitisation to A niger was obtained by skin prick tests and radioallergosorbent test (RAST) using as an antigen an extract of the A niger culture fluid from the process. Of the 325 subjects without work related bronchospasm, only nine (2.7%) had a positive prick test. There were no subjects with symptoms of extrinsic allergic alveolitis. Investigation into the source of the antigen showed that whereas, in some areas of the plant, A niger spores were present, in others there were no detectable spores. In these areas, however, extracts of filters from air samplers were shown by RAST inhibition to contain A niger antigens, indicating that the culture fluid was generating airborne antigen. RAST inhibition studies showed that the A niger culture fluid used in the process contained antigens that were not present in a commercially available A niger extract, thus emphasising the importance in this type of investigation of using antigens prepared from material to which the workers are exposed.
对一家使用黑曲霉菌株通过糖蜜发酵生产柠檬酸的生物技术工厂的员工进行了研究。通过呼吸问卷和临床评估相结合，确定了18名（占员工总数的4.9%）患有与工作相关的支气管痉挛的受试者。其中9名受试者通过皮肤点刺试验和放射变应原吸附试验（RAST）获得了对黑曲霉致敏的证据，试验使用该生产过程中黑曲霉培养液提取物作为抗原。在325名没有与工作相关支气管痉挛的受试者中，只有9名（2.7%）点刺试验呈阳性。没有受试者出现外源性过敏性肺泡炎症状。对抗原来源的调查表明，虽然在工厂的某些区域存在黑曲霉菌孢子，但在其他区域未检测到孢子。然而，在这些区域，通过RAST抑制试验表明，空气采样器过滤器的提取物含有黑曲霉抗原，这表明培养液正在产生空气传播的抗原。RAST抑制试验表明，该生产过程中使用的黑曲霉培养液所含的抗原在市售黑曲霉提取物中不存在，从而强调了在这类调查中使用从工人接触的材料制备的抗原的重要性。
