The Journal of Experimental Medicine
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© The Rockefeller University Press, 0022-1007/1999/12/1897/ $5.00
The Journal of Experimental Medicine, Volume 190, Number 12, December 20, 1999 1897-1902

Brief Definitive Report

The Cysteine Protease Activity of the Major Dust Mite Allergen Der p 1 Selectively Enhances the Immunoglobulin E Antibody Response

Lucy Gougha, Oliver Schulza, Herb F. Sewella, and Farouk Shakiba
a Division of Molecular and Clinical Immunology, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Nottingham, Queen's Medical Centre, Nottingham NG7 2UH, United Kingdom

Correspondence to: Farouk Shakib, Div. of Molecular and Clinical Immunology, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Queen's Medical Centre, Nottingham NG7 2UH, UK. Tel:115-9709-123 Fax:115-9709-125 E-mail:farouk.shakib{at}nottingham.ac.uk.

The house dust mite Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus allergen Der p 1 is the most immunodominant allergen involved in the expression of dust mite–specific immunoglobulin (Ig)E–mediated hypersensitivity. The reason for this potent IgE-eliciting property of Der p 1 remains unknown, but there is mounting in vitro evidence linking the allergenicity of Der p 1 to its cysteine protease activity. Here we demonstrate for the first time that immunization of mice with proteolytically active Der p 1 results in a significant enhancement in total IgE and Der p 1–specific IgE synthesis compared with animals immunized with Der p 1 that was irreversibly blocked with the cysteine protease inhibitor E-64. We conclude that the proteolytic activity of Der p 1 is a major contributor to its allergenicity.

Key Words: cysteine protease, Der p 1, IgE


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