Examination of allergen-specific IgE antibodies by a new MAST (Multiple Antigen Simultaneouz Test) system for the diagnosis of nasal allergies

Abstract

MAST is a new system for detecting allergen-specific IgE antibodies. Multiple antigens can be examined simultaneously in a short period of time by this method. This method was evaluated using 101 serum samples from patients with nasal allergies.More than six allergen-specific IgE antibodies were simultaneously detected in 25% of the 101 serums amples. We compared MAST and RAST using six allergens: HD, D1, D2, Jpanese cedar, Timothy and Ragweed.Good correlation was observed in all six. Similarly, there was good correlation between MAST and skin testing with these allergens. From these results, it was concluded that the MAST system would be useful for detecting specific IgE antibodies.