Anna Hammerich Thysen
Do brain border mast cells mediate brain fog in allergic asthma?
A century ago, allergic diseases were thought to be hysteric phenomena. The discovery of the key immune players in allergy - mast cells and IgE - provided a solid scientific proof of concept for the allergic response. T
oday, neurological symptoms - like brain fog - experienced by individuals with airway allergy and asthma are still questioned. Anecdotal patient reports imply that antihistamines can relieve brain fog in long COVID. Mast cells produce histamine and reside in lung and brain border tissue. We hypothesize that mast cells at the brain borders are responsible for brain fog symptoms in allergic asthma. Using a combination of genetic mouse models, single cell analysis and high dimensional flow cytometry, we will investigate the role of mast cells at the brain borders, and in the development of brain fog in allergic asthma.
