Immunoglobulins in nasal secretions of patients with allergic rhinitis and chronic rhinosinusitis

Allergic rhinitis and chronic rhinosinusitis are the most frequently encountered inflammatory reactions of the sinonasal mucosa. Nasal-associated lymphoid tissue has been suggested as an inductive site for humoral and cellular immune responses in the upper respiratory tract. Immunoglobulins are important elements in human adaptive immune responses and deficiencies of serum immunoglobulins may be associated with recurrent or refractory infections. However, the local humoral immune response to offending antigens in the nasal environment has not been well elucidated. To determine the levels of IgA and IgG subclasses antibodies in the nasal secretions of patients with allergic rhinitis and chronic rhinosinusitis, 25 patients with allergic rhinitis and 20 with chronic rhinosinusitis were included and their nasal secretions were collected to measure the levels of secretary IgA (sIgA), total IgA (tIgA), and IgG subclasses antibodies. There was a significant elevation of IgG₃ in the nasal secretions of patients with chronic rhinosinusitis. No difference was noted in the levels of sIgA, tIgA, IgG₁, IgG₂ and IgG₄ among the three groups. The local defense mechanism of nose reacts to microorganisms and pathogenic antigens by inducing the adaptive humoral immune response to increase the amount of immunoglobulins, with IgG₃ being the major up-regulated antibody.