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Updated: Jul 11, 2026
Embryo Microinjection Techniques for Efficient Site-Specific Mutagenesis in Culex quinquefasciatus
Published on: May 24, 2020
Immunotherapy with mosquito (Culex quinquefasciatus) extract: a double-blind, placebo-controlled study
Deepsikha Srivastava1, Bhanu P Singh, V Thangam Sudha
1Allergy and Immunology Sections, Institute of Genomics and Integrative Biology, Delhi, India.
Background:
Mosquito allergy is well established, but mosquito immunotherapy requires validation using clinical and immunologic variables.
Objective:
To evaluate the tolerability and efficacy of specific immunotherapy with Culex quinquefasciatus (mosquito) extract.
Methods:
We performed a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial of immunotherapy for 1 year in 40 patients with asthma, rhinitis, or both. Patients were evaluated by means of intradermal testing, symptom and drug scores, and histamine provocation testing before and after 1 year of immunotherapy. Mosquito specific IgE and IgG subclass antibody responses were evaluated at the basal level and after 1 year.
Results:
Patients receiving allergen immunotherapy for 1 year showed a significant improvement compared with baseline and patients receiving placebo regarding skin reactions, symptom scores (rhinitis and asthma), and forced expiratory volume in 1 second. Provocation concentration of histamine that caused a decrease in forced expiratory volume in 1 second of 20% by inhalation was elevated in the group receiving immunotherapy. In the active group serologic analysis showed a slight reduction in IgE levels (P = .02) but a significant elevation in IgG4 levels (P = .001), with a significant decrease in the IgE/IgG4 ratio (P = .001). All these changes in the placebo group were nonsignificant.
Conclusions:
Allergen immunotherapy with mosquito extract was well tolerated, with improvement in symptoms and airway reactivity. Good clinical outcome was associated with increased IgG4 antibody levels.
