Aetiopathogenesis of severe cutaneous adverse reactions (SCARs) in children: A 9-year experience in a tertiary care paediatric hospital setting.

Background: Severe cutaneous adverse reactions (SCARs) are delayed-type hypersensitivity reactions to drugs including as follows: Drug Reaction with Eosinophilia and Systemic Symptoms (DRESS), Stevens-Johnson syndrome (SJS), Toxic Epidermal Necrolysis (TEN) and Acute Generalized Exanthematous Pustulosis (AGEP). Incidence, triggers and management of SCARs have not been investigated in large-scale epidemiological studies on children.

Objective: The aim of our study was to collect epidemiological, clinical and aetiological data from children with SCARs referred to our tertiary care paediatric hospital of Florence.

Identification of T-cell epitopes from benzylpenicillin conjugated to human serum albumin and implication in penicillin allergy.

Background: There is in vitro evidence that T cells from allergic patients react to benzylpenicillin-human serum albumin (BP-HSA) bioconjugates. Our group has recently shown the existence of naïve CD4 T cells recognizing BP-HSA in healthy donors. However, BP-haptenated peptides from HSA participating in the immunization of allergic patients have never been identified.