Chronic inflammation of the skin can be induced in IgE transgenic mice by means of a single challenge of multivalent antigen.

Background: It is now widely accepted that IgE mediates immediate-type allergic response. However, the pathologic role of IgE is controversial in the chronic allergic inflammation observed in atopic diseases, such as asthma and atopic dermatitis.

Objective: We investigated the role of IgE in cutaneous allergic reactions by using 2 newly developed lines of antigen-specific IgE transgenic mice.