Word: mast
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Members of the Fly Club, a Harvard final club where Houghton was a member, flew their flag at half mast yesterday...
...when the grain lodges in the mucous membrane of a person susceptible to allergies, its protein message is heeded by the human immune system, which confuses it with a menacing invader. Alarmed, the system immediately begins churning out legions of IgE (for immunoglobulin E) antibodies, stationing them on "mast cells," which patrol the body's tissues...
...next time similar pollen grains are detected, the antibodies signal the mast cells, which release a flood of chemicals, including histamine, against the harmless intruder. It is histamine that causes swelling, itching and other irritations all too familiar to hay fever sufferers. At the same time, additional IgE antibodies are produced and placed in position on mast cells, so that the next exposure to the pollen may produce a more severe response...
Most doctors are convinced that a faster, more successful cure for allergies is bound to come. Using molecular-biology techniques, researchers have already identified IgE receptors on the mast cell, basically little berths in which the antibody docks. If they can find or synthesize another substance that blocks those receptors, they can prevent IgE from docking and unleashing the mast cell's stream of debilitating chemicals. And as scientists isolate and analyze more and more human genes, they may find the ones that, when defective, cause allergic reactions. Such discoveries could quickly lead to precise tests for allergies and eventually...
...been a really outstanding colleague,"Costantini said. "She's really helped a number ofgroups at Columbia to use mast cells to doembryology experiments...