From Mice To Men: Interpolating to Humans the Results of a Mouse Study on Low Level Spore Exposures and the Protease as the Mechanism of Allergy

In March, researchers from Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center published a study characterizing exposure to viable Penicillium chrysogenum mold spores [Schwab CJ, Cooley JD, Brasel T, Jumper CA, Graham SC, Straus DC. Characterization of exposure to low levels of viable Penicillium chrysogenum conidia and allergic sensitization induced by a protease allergen extract from viable P. chrysogenum conidia in mice. International Archives of Allergy and Immunology 2003 Mar;130(3):200-8].

The researchers found two important results. First, they confirmed that mice exposed to what they considered to be low levels of viable P. chrysogenum spores did not exhibit symptoms of …