• DOI:10.1038/333816A0
• Corpus ID: 12992106

Human basophil degranulation triggered by very dilute antiserum against IgE

@article{Davenas1988HumanBD,
  title={Human basophil degranulation triggered by very dilute antiserum against IgE},
  author={Elisabeth Davenas and Francis Beauvais and J. Amara and Menachem Oberbaum and Boaz Robinzon and A. Miadonnai and Alberto Tedeschi and Bruce H. Pomeranz and P. Fortner and Philippe Belon and J. L. Sainte-Laudy and Bernard Poitevin and Jacques E. Benveniste},
  journal={Nature},
  year={1988},
  volume={333},
  pages={816-818}
}

• E. Davenas, F. Beauvais, +10 authors J. Benveniste
• Published 30 June 1988
• Biology
• Nature

When human polymorphonuclear basophils, a type of white blood cell with antibodies of the immunoglobulin E (IgE) type on its surface, are exposed to anti-IgE antibodies, they release histamine from their intracellular granules and change their staining properties. The latter can be demonstrated at dilutions of anti-IgE that range from 1 x 10(2) to 1 x 10(120); over that range, there are successive peaks of degranulation from 40 to 60% of the basophils, despite the calculated absence of any anti-IgE molecules at the highest dilutions. Since dilutions need to be accompanied by vigorous shaking for the effects to be observed, transmission of the biological information could be related to the molecular organization of water.