IMMUNOGLOBULIN E

Course overview

AS ONE OF THE FIVE DESIGNATED IMMUNOGLOBULIN ISOTYPES, IMMUNOGLOBULIN E (IGE) PLAYS A MAJOR ROLE IN ATOPIC CONDITIONS BY INDUCING IMMEDIATE HYPERSENSITIVITY REACTIONS. IGE ALSO CONTRIBUTES SIGNIFICANTLY TO THE BODY'S IMMUNE RESPONSE TO PARASITIC INFECTIONS, WHICH ARE MORE PREVALENT IN THIRD-WORLD COUNTRIES. A FRACTION OF IGE ANTIBODIES IS FOUND IN THE PLASMA. IGE ANTIBODIES ARE PREDOMINANTLY FOUND IN THE TISSUES, FIRMLY ATTACHED TO EFFECTOR CELLS, SUCH AS MAST CELLS AND BASOPHILS, BY HIGH-AFFINITY IGE FC RECEPTOR (FC EPSILON RI) AND LOW-AFFINITY IGE RECEPTOR (FC EPSILON RII). THESE TWO RECEPTORS FACILITATE THE IMMUNOLOGIC RESPONSES THAT ARE CARRIED OUT BY IGE. THIS ACTIVITY DESCRIBES THE PATHOPHYSIOLOGY OF AN ALLERGIC REACTION AND HIGHLIGHTS THE ROLE OF THE INTERPROFESSIONAL TEAM IN THE MANAGEMENT OF THESE PATIENTS.