Showing papers by "William W. Busse published in 1972"

Where is the allergic reaction in ragweed asthma?: II. Demonstration of ragweed antigen in airborne particles smaller than pollen

Abstract: Asthma from ragweed pollen presents a paradox. The pollen grains are too large to penetrate the lower airway, but amounts of pollen sufficient to cause asthma when inhaled through the mouth do not do so when applied directly to the nasal mucosa. This paradox could be resolved if ragweed antigen existed in particles 5μ and smaller. An Andersen sampler was operated continuously from mid-August to mid-September to collect airborne particles of various sizes. Rayweed pollen was found only on the first two stages, but each stage was found to have ragweed antigen when tested by the passive transfer antigen neutralization technique. The results demonstrated airborne particles, less than 5μ in diameter, capable of neutralizing ragweed reagin. These particles could penetrate to lower airways and initiate an allergic reaction there.