Huey-Jy Huang wird in Anerkennung ihrer Forschungen im Bereich der Medizinischen Neurowissenschaften und der Allergieforschung ausgezeichnet.
(IgE recognition of the house dust mite allergen Der p 37 is associated with asthma, J Allergy Clin Immunol. 2022 Mar;149(3):1031-1043, doi.org/10.1016/j.jaci.2021.07.040)
House dust mites (HDMs) are one of the most significant triggers of allergies worldwide, affecting approximately 65–130 million people worldwide. HDM allergy is an IgE-mediated type 1 hypersensitivity reaction to dust mite allergens, causing allergic symptoms such as rhinitis, asthma, and atopic dermatitis. More than 30 groups of HDM allergens have been identified. Component-resolved diagnosis (CRD) involves testing for IgE sensitizations to allergen molecules, allowing for an understanding of the association between allergen sensitization and disease. CRD provides useful information for the treatment of patients suffering from HDM allergy and the prevention of disease progression.
In this study, a new house dust mite allergen, Der p 37, was identified from the phage-displayed HDM cDNA library immune-screened with a serum pool of HDM-allergic patients. The allergen exhibits homology to chitin-binding proteins and is primarily present in the feces of HDMs, making it inhalable by the allergic patients. Recombinant Der p 37 (rDer p 37), expressed in E. coli with a molecular mass of 26.49 kDa, presented a predominantly random coil structure. Approximately one-third of individuals allergic to HDMs have IgE antibodies specific to rDer p 37. rDer p 37 could induced basophil activation and CD4+ T cell proliferation, indicating its allergenic activity. HDM-allergic patients sensitized to Der p 37 reacted to a greater number of HDM allergens compared to patients not allergic to Der p 37. Importantly, patients with asthma showed a significantly higher frequency of IgE reactivity to this allergen than patients without asthma. Der p 37 may serve as a surrogate marker for severe HDM sensitization and asthma.
Huey-Jy Huang schloss ihr Doktoratsstudium im PhD-Programm Molekulare, Zelluläre und Klinische Allergologie (MCCA) an der Medizinischen Universität Wien im Jahr 2019 ab. Ihre Dissertation mit dem Titel „Identification of the dominant T cell and B cell epitopes of important HDM allergens“ wurde im Jahr 2019 von der Österreichischen Gesellschaft für Allergologie und Immunologie (ÖGAI) mit dem Dissertationspreis ausgezeichnet. Von 2019 bis 2022 hatte Huey-Jy Huang eine Postdoc-Stelle am Institut für Pathophysiologie und Allergieforschung, Zentrum für Pathophysiologie, Infektiologie und Immunologie der Medizinischen Universität Wien inne. Seit 2023 ist sie als Postdoktorandin an der Karl Landsteiner Universität Krems im Rahmen des Danube Allergy Research Cluster tätig.