Regulation of the expression of distinct human secreted IgE proteins produced by alternative RNA splicing.

The use of splice sites for human epsilon mRNAs is tightly regulated, as the potential number of splice products far exceeds that actually produced. Our studies show that use of the epsilon alternative splices is regulated by a limited number of stimuli, and the relative production of the epsilon mRNA variants follows a developmental profile. In addition, we have found disease-related changes in the pattern of epsilon mRNA variants encoding distinctive IgE isoforms. Analysis of the biological activity of expressed recombinant IgE proteins and measurement of their levels in disease conditions will directly answer questions as to the biological relevance of the changes observed in epsilon mRNA splicing. This information will then be able to be used for rational therapeutic design interventions in IgE-mediated disorders.