Apoptosis of Eosinophil Granulocytes

Abstract

In the past 10 years, the number of people in the Czech Republic with allergies has doubled to over three million. Allergic pollen catarrh, constitutional dermatitis and asthma are the allergic disorders most often diagnosed. Genuine food allergies today affect 6–8% of nursing infants, 3–5% of small children, and 2–4% of adults. These disorders are connected with eosinophil granulocytes and their apoptosis. Eosinophil granulocytes are postmitotic leukocytes containing a number of histotoxic substances that contribute to the initiation and continuation of allergic inflammatory reactions. Eosinophilia results from the disruption of the standard half-life of eosinophils by the expression of mechanisms that block the apoptosis of eosinophils, leading to the development of chronic inflammation. Glucocorticoids are used as a strong acting anti-inflammatory medicine in the treatment of hypereosinophilia. The removal of eosinophils by the mechanism of apoptosis is the effect of this process. This work sums up the contemporary knowledge concerning the apoptosis of eosinophils, its role in the aforementioned disorders, and the indications for the use of glucocorticoids in their related therapies.