Characterization of the Physical Form of Allergenic Cry j 1 in the Urban Atmosphere and Determination of Cry j 1 Denaturation by Air Pollutants

• Main Authors: Qingyue Wang, Jun Morita, Xiumin Gong, Shinichi Nakamura, Miho Suzuki, Senlin Lu, Kazuhiko Sekiguchi, Takuya Nakajima, Daisuke Nakajima, Makoto Miwa
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Asian Association for Atmospheric Environment 2012-03-01
• Series: Asian Journal of Atmospheric Environment
• Subjects: japanese cedar pollinosis; allergenic cry j 1; surface plasmon resonance (spr); sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (sds-page); air pollutants
• Online Access: http://asianjae.org/_common/do.php?a=full&b=11&bidx=1573&aidx=19856
• ISSN: 1976-6912; 2287-1160

In this study, we characterized the physical form of allergenic Cry j 1 in the urban atmosphere. Through an immunofluorescence antibody method, we showed that allergenic Cry j 1 exists as fine particles (≤1.1 μm). To determine Cry j 1 concentrations and its particle size distribution, we used the ELISA method to confirm that most Cry j 1 exists as fine particles in the urban atmosphere and is found at high concentrations on fine day next to rainy day. Furthermore, we evaluated Cry j 1 denaturation by using the Biacore J system based on the surface plasmon resonence (SPR) principle and sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE). We showed that the dissociation constant (KD) of Cry j 1 that has been exposed to urban polluted air is lower (1.76 ×10-14 M) than that of Cry j 1 (1.32×10-9-3.37×10-9 M) of original pollen grains that has not been exposed to air pollutants. Cry j 1 turns into low molecular weight proteins by reacting with various acidic solutions. In sum, we showed that allergenic Cry j 1 exists as fine particles that can deposit in the lower respiratory tract. This finding clarifies the relationship between Japanese cedar pollinosis and air pollutants.