Basophils Orchestrating Eosinophils’ Chemotaxis and Function in Allergic Inflammation

Eosinophils are well known to contribute significantly to Th2 immunity, such as allergic inflammations. Although basophils have often not been considered in the pathogenicity of allergic dermatitis and asthma, their role in Th2 immunity has become apparent in recent years. Eosinophils and basophils are present at sites of allergic inflammations. It is therefore reasonable to speculate that these two types of granulocytes interact in vivo. In various experimental allergy models, basophils and eosinophils appear to be closely linked by directly or indirectly influencing each other since they are responsive to similar cytokines and chemokines. Indeed, basophils are shown to be the gatekeepers that are capable of regulating eosinophil entry into inflammatory tissue sites through activation-induced interactions with endothelium. However, the direct evidence that eosinophils and basophils interact is still rarely described. Nevertheless, new findings on the regulation and function of eosinophils and basophils biology reported in the last 25 years have shed some light on their potential interaction. This review will focus on the current knowledge that basophils may regulate the biology of eosinophil in atopic dermatitis and allergic asthma.

The 100 Top-cited Articles in Main Allergy Journals: A Bibliometric Analysis

The objective of this study was to identify the characteristics of the top 100 cited studies in main allergy journals. The 100 top-cited studies in allergy journals from the Web of Science were enrolled. The key characteristics included citation, year, authors, country, institution and journal were analyzed. The number of citations of the 100 top-cited studies ranged from 409 to 2313. They were published between 1972 and 2014. Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology published the largest number of top-cited studies (n=74), followed by Allergy (n=13) and Clinical and Experimental Allergy (n=9). The greatest number of studies were USA (n=45), followed by England (n=10), Canada (n=7), and Sweden (n=7). The institution with the largest number of studies was the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in the USA (n=8). The country with the largest number of top institutions was the USA (n=8). The reviews had higher average citation times than articles. Our study can give a historical perspective on the scientific progress of allergy, as well as provide important insights into priorities and trends of allergy and could serve as sources for future studies.