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On 17. April 2024, Dr. Huey-Jy Huang was awarded the prestigious Johann Wilhelm Ritter von Mannagetta 2022 of the Austrian Academy of Sciences (ÖAW) (https://stipendien.oeaw.ac.at/preise/naturwissenschaften/johann-wilhelm-ritter-von-mannagetta-foerderpreis-fuer-medizin) for her publication “IgE recognition of the house dust mite allergen Der p 37 is associated with asthma” (Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, 2022,149(3):1031-1043).

House dust mites (HDMs) are one of the most significant triggers of allergies worldwide, affecting approximately 65–130 million people worldwide. HDM allergy is an IgE-mediated type 1 hypersensitivity reaction to dust mite allergens, causing allergic symptoms such as rhinitis, asthma, and atopic dermatitis. Component-resolved diagnosis (CRD) involves testing for IgE sensitizations to allergen molecules, allowing for an understanding of the association between sensitization to certain allergen molecules and disease. CRD provides useful information for the treatment of patients suffering from HDM allergy and the prevention of disease progression.

In this study, a new house dust mite allergen, Der p 37, was identified from a HDM expression cDNA library immune-screened with a serum IgE of HDM-allergic patients. Der p 37 exhibits homology to chitin-binding proteins and is primarily present in the fecal pellets of HDMs, making it inhalable by the allergic patients. Recombinant Der p 37 (rDer p 37), expressed in E. coli with a molecular mass of 26.49 kDa. Approximately one-third of individuals allergic to HDMs have IgE antibodies specific to rDer p 37. rDer p 37 could induced basophil activation and CD4+ T cell proliferation, indicating its allergenic activity. HDM-allergic patients sensitized to Der p 37 reacted to a greater number of HDM allergens compared to patients not allergic to Der p 37. Importantly, patients with asthma showed a significantly higher frequency of IgE reactivity to this allergen than patients without asthma. Der p 37 may serve as a surrogate marker for severe HDM sensitization and asthma.

Dr. Huey-Jy Huang completed her doctoral studies in the Molecular, Cellular and Clinical Allergology (MCCA) PhD program at the Medical University of Vienna in 2019. From 2019 to 2022, Huey-Jy Huang held a postdoctoral position at the Institute for Pathophysiology and Allergy Research, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology at the Medical University of Vienna. Since 2023, she has been working as a postdoctoral researcher at the Karl Landsteiner University Krems as part of the Danube Allergy Research Cluster (https://www.kl.ac.at/en/research/danube-allergy-research-cluster-towards-cure-allergy), a research program which is funded by the Country of Lower Austria.