Demonstration and Implications of Lysozyme and Immunoglobulins in Human Ear Wax

Petrakis, Nicholas L.; Doherty, Mark; Lee, Rose E.; Smith, Sophie; Page, Nicole

doi:10.1038/229119a0

Cited by 45 publications

(17 citation statements)

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“…Its hydrophobic properties, due to the high concentration of lipids, shelter the canal from physical damage (Kataura and Kataura, 1967), while other components probably protect against certain microbial strains (Main and Lim, 1976;Petrakis et al, 1971;Sirigu et al, 1983). Nevertheless there has been considerable dispute in the literature with regard to the antibacterial activity of cerumen.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 96%

Local immune response in the skin of the external auditory meatus: An immunohistochemical study

Sirigu

Perra

Ferreli

et al. 1997

Microsc. Res. Tech.

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Cerumen plays an important role in the protection of the external auditory meatus against several kinds of damage. Its hydrophobic properties, due to the high concentration of lipids, shelter the canal from physical damages, while other components probably protect against certain microbial strains. Nevertheless there has been considerable dispute in the literature with regard to the antibacterial activity of cerumen. Because of the importance of the role of immunoglobulins (Ig) in local defense mechanisms, we attempted to study, by immunohistochemical methods, the presence and localization of the cells necessary to activate an Ig‐mediated immune response and the epithelial expression of immunoglobulin A (IgA), immunoglobulin M (IgM), and immunoglobulin G (IgG) in order to obtain information about a local immune response in those areas of the skin that take part in cerumen production. Our findings indicate that in the human skin of the external auditory canal the cells necessary to activate an antibody‐mediated immune response were localized in the different layers of the epidermis and/or in the dermis surrounding the sebaceous and ceruminous glands and the piliary follicle, while an intense immunoreactivity for IgA and IgG was observed in the epithelial layers of the skin. The results suggest that the external auditory canal is protected from the insults of pathogens by an antibody‐mediated local immune response, because all the effector components of an active local immune system are present. Microsc. Res. Tech. 38:329–334, 1997. © 1997 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 96%

Local immune response in the skin of the external auditory meatus: An immunohistochemical study

Sirigu

Perra

Ferreli

et al. 1997

Microsc. Res. Tech.

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“…The dry allele is predominant in Mongoloid populations of Asia and in American Indians, whereas the wet allele is found predominantly in Caucasian and Negro populations (1, 10). Earwax has been found to contain amino acids, fatty acids, neurostearic acid, cerotic acid, cholesterol, triglyceride, hexone bases, lysozyme, immunoglobulin, glycopeptide, copper, and other components, although differences in composition between the cerumen types have been described (6,7,9,15).The function of cerumen in protecting the ear against invasion of microorganisms has long been a subject of controversy. It has been suggested that cerumen is unable to prevent infection and that the rich nutrients of earwax support luxuriant growth of bacteria and fungi (3,8,13,14).…”

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confidence: 99%

“…To further determine whether cerumen lysozyme (9,10) active agent leading to the death of cells, pure egg white lysozyme (Sigma) was dissolved in test cultures was dependent upon the concentrations of cerumen used. Perhaps a concentration buffer at various concentrations up to 0.5 mg/ ml, which is much higher than the concentration of lysozyme present in cerumen, and was substituted for the cerumen suspension in the same procedure described above.…”

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Bactericidal activity of cerumen

Chai¹,

Chai²

1980

Antimicrob Agents Chemother

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Freshly collected cerumen (dry form) suspended at a concentration of 3% in glycerol-sodium bicarbonate buffer showed bactericidal activity against some strains of bacteria tested. This suspension reduced the viability of Haemophilus influenzae, Escherichia coli K-12, and Serratia marcescens by more than 99%, whereas the viability of two Pseudomonas aeruginosa isolates, E. coli K-1, Streptococcus, and two Staphylococcus aureus isolates of human origin was reduced by 30 to 80%. The results support the hypothesis that cerumen functions to kill certain foreign organisms which enter the ear canal.Cerumen, commonly known as earwax, is secreted by both ceruminous and sebaceous glands. Two distinct forms of human cerumen, dry and wet, are associated with race and controlled by two autosomal alleles (10). The dry allele is predominant in Mongoloid populations of Asia and in American Indians, whereas the wet allele is found predominantly in Caucasian and Negro populations (1, 10). Earwax has been found to contain amino acids, fatty acids, neurostearic acid, cerotic acid, cholesterol, triglyceride, hexone bases, lysozyme, immunoglobulin, glycopeptide, copper, and other components, although differences in composition between the cerumen types have been described (6,7,9,15).The function of cerumen in protecting the ear against invasion of microorganisms has long been a subject of controversy. It has been suggested that cerumen is unable to prevent infection and that the rich nutrients of earwax support luxuriant growth of bacteria and fungi (3,8,13,14). On the other hand, it has been suggested that cerumen might have antimicrobial activity, although little evidence has been presented to support this contention (5, 9). Burtenshaw (2) extracted cerumen with either saline or an alcohol-ether solvent and showed that the saline extract promoted the growth of streptococci somewhat, whereas the alcohol-ether extract was inhibitory. However, the concentration of cerumen in the alcohol-ether extract used by this author was not specified. In this communication we will describe a potent antibacterial activity of cerumen suspended in buffer against certain strains of common bacteria which are often encountered in humans.Pooled cerumen was collected with a sterile earwax hook from 12 healthy individuals aged from 5 to 42, including males and females, and kept in a sterile bottle at 4°C. All cerumen belonged to the typical dry form, which appeared flaky or granular and yellowish white. The pooled cerumen was mixed well, weighed, and suspended in buffer (5% NaHCO3, pH 8.2, containing 30% glycerol) at a concentration of 3.5% (wt/vol). The cerumen-buffer mixture was homogenized by repeated passage through a series of needles ranging from 19 to 23 gauge. This procedure broke the cerumen into fine particles distributed evenly in buffer and resulted in a milky suspension. Cerumen suspensions at concentrations over 3.5% were unsatisfactory because all the cerumen remained in big particles even after prolonged homogenization. The cerumen was ster...

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“…The argumentation against a bactericidal activity are based on the consideration that the rich nutrients of ear wax enable bacteria and fungi to grow [57][58][59][60][61]. On the other hand there are several reports describing an antimicrobial effect of ear wax with an effect against a wide range of bacteria including Haemophilus influenzae, Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli and fungi [61][62][63][64][65][66]. Stoeckelhuber et al reported the detection of the antimicrobial proteins ß-defensin-1, ß-defensin-2, cathelicidin, lysozyme, lactoferrin, MUC1 and the secretory component of IgA in the ceruminous glandular cells by histochemical analysis [67].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Human antimicrobial proteins in ear wax

Schwaab

Gurr

Neumann

et al. 2011

Eur J Clin Microbiol Infect Dis

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Introduction Antimicrobial peptides (AMP)Generally speaking surfaces like the skin or the oral mucosa are protected by several factors including the adaptive and innate immune systems against invading bacteria and fungi. The antimicrobial mucosal shield of the human airways has been subject of several studies and is well investigated [1][2][3]. A growing number of different human antimicrobial peptides (AMP) have been described which are produced e. g. by surface epithelial cells or by neutrophil granulocytes. The AMPs have a broad, but not identical spectrum of antimicrobial activity against bacteria, virus or fungi. A synergistic and additive effect of different AMPs has been reported [4]. In addition to their antimicrobial charactics, AMPs play a major part in inflammation, immune activation, and wound healing [5][6][7]. Some of the well described AMPs are subject to this study and therefore will be further described. The human ß-Defensins (hBD)The family of human ß-Defensins (hBD) is named after their beta-sheet structure which is stabilised by intramolecular disulfide bonds. Human ß-Defensin 1 (hBD1) was first isolated from hemofiltrate [8] and is expressed in epithelial cells of the urinary, respiratory tract and in keratinocytes [9][10]. It has a strong antimicrobial effect on Gram-negative bacteria [11][12]. Human ß-Defensin 2 (hBD2) is an inducible (by Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Helicobacter pylori, Lipoprotienacid, Candida albicans, TumorNecrosis-Factor-α, Interleucine1-ß) peptide [13][14][15] with a strong antimicrobial effect on Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Candida albicans, and a relatively weak effect on Staphylococcus aureus [13]. The human ß-Defensin 3 (hBD3) can be induced by tumor necrosis factor α and contact with Pseudmonas aeruginosa or Staphalyococcus aureus e. g. in keratinocytes [16]. HBD3 has antimicrobial activity against Staphylococcus aureus, including Methicillin restistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), Streptococcus pyogenes, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Escherichia coli, Vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus faecium, Candida albicans and Haemophilus influenza [9; 12; 17]. Human LL-37 (LL-37)LL-37 is the 37-amino acid long C-terminus and the antimicrobial active component of the human Cathelicidin antimicrobial peptide 18 (hCAP-18). It is expressed in leukocytes (monocytes, neutrophiles, T-cells, B-cells), epithelial cells (skin, gastrointestinal and respiratory tract) and secreted into wound and airway surface fluid [18][19][20][21]. LL-37 alone and in combination with other AMPs is bactericidal against a broad spectrum of [21][22][23]. Apart from the antimicrobial activity LL-37 plays a role in angiogenesis, cancer development, neutralisation of bacterial lipopolysaccharide and is chemotactic for human monocytes, neutrophils and CD 4 T-lymphocytes [24-26.]. Human Secretory Leucoprotease Inhibitor (hSLPI)hSLPI is a 11.7-kDa heavy protein which is expressed in macrophages, neutrophils and epithelial cells [27-28.].The antimicrobial activity against Gram-negativ...

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Demonstration and Implications of Lysozyme and Immunoglobulins in Human Ear Wax

Cited by 45 publications

References 10 publications

Local immune response in the skin of the external auditory meatus: An immunohistochemical study

Local immune response in the skin of the external auditory meatus: An immunohistochemical study

Bactericidal activity of cerumen

Human antimicrobial proteins in ear wax

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