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. 1963 Mar;6(2):189–203.

Non-Persisting Dyes in Anaphylactic Investigation

J G Feinberg, Janet M Dewdney
PMCID: PMC1423223  PMID: 13962735

Abstract

A rapidly eliminated vital dye, available under the names Coomassie blue (CB) and Fast Cyanine (FC), has been found suitable for the demonstration of local anaphylactic reactions in mice and guinea-pigs. Like other dyes used for this purpose, circulating CB/FC does not readily escape through the blood vessel walls except at sites of increased capillary permeability, as in local anaphylaxis. The blue-mauve colour obtained with CB/FC is almost as vivid as that given by Pontamine Sky blue, and is as sensitive an indicator of both cutaneous and pinnal anaphylaxis.

CB/FC can be given both intravenously and intraperitoneally for the demonstration of local anaphylaxis, and disappears from the animal, both locally and systemically, within 3–6 hours. Animals cleared of CB/FC can be re-dyed and re-challenged repeatedly. Other factors being equal, response at newly reactive sites are as good as those obtained originally at the initially reacted sites.

Use has been made of the non-persistence of CB/FC in three situations requiring repeated challenge of the same animal: the development of pinnal anaphylactic sensitivity following antigen injection in mice; the effect of challenge by one antigen on the anaphylactic reactivity of a dually passively sensitized skin site on subsequent challenge with the same, or the other, antigen; and the effect of single antigen challenge on the pinnal anaphylactic reactivity of the ears of dually actively sensitized animals on subsequent challenge with the second antigen. In these investigations CB/FC has made it possible to challenge a single animal repeatedly, without interference of residual dye colour from previous challenges. This should make possible a more direct approach to problems in anaphylaxis which are best studied by repeated local reaction visualized by dye.

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Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

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