Wasp Venoms: Venoms produced by the wasp (Vespid) family of stinging insects, including hornets; the venoms contain enzymes, biogenic amines, histamine releasing factors, kinins, toxic polypeptides, etc., and are similar to bee venoms.Wasps: Any of numerous winged hymenopterous insects of social as well as solitary habits and having formidable stings.Bee Venoms: Venoms obtained from Apis mellifera (honey bee) and related species. They contain various enzymes, polypeptide toxins, and other substances, some of which are allergenic or immunogenic or both. These venoms were formerly used in rheumatism to stimulate the pituitary-adrenal system.Insect Bites and Stings: Bites and stings inflicted by insects.Desensitization, Immunologic: Immunosuppression by the administration of increasing doses of antigen. Though the exact mechanism is not clear, the therapy results in an increase in serum levels of allergen-specific IMMUNOGLOBULIN G, suppression of specific IgE, and an increase in suppressor T-cell activity.Crotalid Venoms: Venoms from snakes of the subfamily Crotalinae or pit vipers, found mostly in the Americas. They include the rattlesnake, cottonmouth, fer-de-lance, bushmaster, and American copperhead. Their venoms contain nontoxic proteins, cardio-, hemo-, cyto-, and neurotoxins, and many enzymes, especially phospholipases A. Many of the toxins have been characterized.Phospholipases A1: A phospholipase that hydrolyzes the acyl group attached to the 1-position of PHOSPHOGLYCERIDES.Venoms: Poisonous animal secretions forming fluid mixtures of many different enzymes, toxins, and other substances. These substances are produced in specialized glands and secreted through specialized delivery systems (nematocysts, spines, fangs, etc.) for disabling prey or predator.Anaphylaxis: An acute hypersensitivity reaction due to exposure to a previously encountered ANTIGEN. The reaction may include rapidly progressing URTICARIA, respiratory distress, vascular collapse, systemic SHOCK, and death.Antigens, CD63: Ubiquitously-expressed tetraspanin proteins that are found in late ENDOSOMES and LYSOSOMES and have been implicated in intracellular transport of proteins.Cobra Venoms: Venoms from snakes of the genus Naja (family Elapidae). They contain many specific proteins that have cytotoxic, hemolytic, neurotoxic, and other properties. Like other elapid venoms, they are rich in enzymes. They include cobramines and cobralysins.Viper Venoms: Venoms from SNAKES of the viperid family. They tend to be less toxic than elapid or hydrophid venoms and act mainly on the vascular system, interfering with coagulation and capillary membrane integrity and are highly cytotoxic. They contain large amounts of several enzymes, other factors, and some toxins.Immunoglobulin E: An immunoglobulin associated with MAST CELLS. Overexpression has been associated with allergic hypersensitivity (HYPERSENSITIVITY, IMMEDIATE).Basophils: Granular leukocytes characterized by a relatively pale-staining, lobate nucleus and cytoplasm containing coarse dark-staining granules of variable size and stainable by basic dyes.Elapid Venoms: Venoms from snakes of the family Elapidae, including cobras, kraits, mambas, coral, tiger, and Australian snakes. The venoms contain polypeptide toxins of various kinds, cytolytic, hemolytic, and neurotoxic factors, but fewer enzymes than viper or crotalid venoms. Many of the toxins have been characterized.Spider Venoms: Venoms of arthropods of the order Araneida of the ARACHNIDA. The venoms usually contain several protein fractions, including ENZYMES, hemolytic, neurolytic, and other TOXINS, BIOLOGICAL.Hypersensitivity: Altered reactivity to an antigen, which can result in pathologic reactions upon subsequent exposure to that particular antigen.Arthropod Venoms: Venoms from animals of the phylum Arthropoda. Those most investigated are from scorpions and spiders of the class Arachnidae and from ant, bee, and wasp families of the Insecta order Hymenoptera. The venoms contain protein toxins, enzymes, and other bioactive substances and may be lethal to man.Scorpion Venoms: Venoms from animals of the order Scorpionida of the class Arachnida. They contain neuro- and hemotoxins, enzymes, and various other factors that may release acetylcholine and catecholamines from nerve endings. Of the several protein toxins that have been characterized, most are immunogenic.Peptides: Members of the class of compounds composed of AMINO ACIDS joined together by peptide bonds between adjacent amino acids into linear, branched or cyclical structures. OLIGOPEPTIDES are composed of approximately 2-12 amino acids. Polypeptides are composed of approximately 13 or more amino acids. PROTEINS are linear polypeptides that are normally synthesized on RIBOSOMES.Allergens: Antigen-type substances that produce immediate hypersensitivity (HYPERSENSITIVITY, IMMEDIATE).Leukotriene C4: The conjugation product of LEUKOTRIENE A4 and glutathione. It is the major arachidonic acid metabolite in macrophages and human mast cells as well as in antigen-sensitized lung tissue. It stimulates mucus secretion in the lung, and produces contractions of nonvascular and some VASCULAR SMOOTH MUSCLE. (From Dictionary of Prostaglandins and Related Compounds, 1990)Skin Tests: Epicutaneous or intradermal application of a sensitizer for demonstration of either delayed or immediate hypersensitivity. Used in diagnosis of hypersensitivity or as a test for cellular immunity.Bothrops: A genus of poisonous snakes of the VIPERIDAE family. About 50 species are known and all are found in tropical America and southern South America. Bothrops atrox is the fer-de-lance and B. jararaca is the jararaca. (Goin, Goin, and Zug, Introduction to Herpetology, 3d ed, p336)Cockroaches: Insects of the order Dictyoptera comprising several families including Blaberidae, BLATTELLIDAE, Blattidae (containing the American cockroach PERIPLANETA americana), Cryptocercidae, and Polyphagidae.Cyprinidae: A family of freshwater fish comprising the minnows or CARPS.Periplaneta: A genus in the family Blattidae containing several species, the most common being P. americana, the American cockroach.Feminization: Development of female secondary SEX CHARACTERISTICS in the MALE. It is due to the effects of estrogenic metabolites of precursors from endogenous or exogenous sources, such as ADRENAL GLANDS or therapeutic drugs.Motivation: Those factors which cause an organism to behave or act in either a goal-seeking or satisfying manner. They may be influenced by physiological drives or by external stimuli.Internet: A loose confederation of computer communication networks around the world. The networks that make up the Internet are connected through several backbone networks. The Internet grew out of the US Government ARPAnet project and was designed to facilitate information exchange.Physician-Patient Relations: The interactions between physician and patient.Research Personnel: Those individuals engaged in research.Questionnaires: Predetermined sets of questions used to collect data - clinical data, social status, occupational group, etc. The term is often applied to a self-completed survey instrument.Synaptic Transmission: The communication from a NEURON to a target (neuron, muscle, or secretory cell) across a SYNAPSE. In chemical synaptic transmission, the presynaptic neuron releases a NEUROTRANSMITTER that diffuses across the synaptic cleft and binds to specific synaptic receptors, activating them. The activated receptors modulate specific ion channels and/or second-messenger systems in the postsynaptic cell. In electrical synaptic transmission, electrical signals are communicated as an ionic current flow across ELECTRICAL SYNAPSES.Insects: The class Insecta, in the phylum ARTHROPODA, whose members are characterized by division into three parts: head, thorax, and abdomen. They are the dominant group of animals on earth; several hundred thousand different kinds having been described. Three orders, HEMIPTERA; DIPTERA; and SIPHONAPTERA; are of medical interest in that they cause disease in humans and animals. (From Borror et al., An Introduction to the Study of Insects, 4th ed, p1)Neoplasms: New abnormal growth of tissue. Malignant neoplasms show a greater degree of anaplasia and have the properties of invasion and metastasis, compared to benign neoplasms.Bees: Insect members of the superfamily Apoidea, found almost everywhere, particularly on flowers. About 3500 species occur in North America. They differ from most WASPS in that their young are fed honey and pollen rather than animal food.Cell Line, Tumor: A cell line derived from cultured tumor cells.Apoptosis: One of the mechanisms by which CELL DEATH occurs (compare with NECROSIS and AUTOPHAGOCYTOSIS). Apoptosis is the mechanism responsible for the physiological deletion of cells and appears to be intrinsically programmed. It is characterized by distinctive morphologic changes in the nucleus and cytoplasm, chromatin cleavage at regularly spaced sites, and the endonucleolytic cleavage of genomic DNA; (DNA FRAGMENTATION); at internucleosomal sites. This mode of cell death serves as a balance to mitosis in regulating the size of animal tissues and in mediating pathologic processes associated with tumor growth.Drug Repositioning: The deliberate and methodical practice of finding new applications for existing drugs.Molecular Imprinting: A methodology for chemically synthesizing polymer molds of specific molecules or recognition sites of specific molecules. Applications for molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) include separations, assays and biosensors, and catalysis.Anti-Bacterial Agents: Substances that reduce the growth or reproduction of BACTERIA.ArchivesProfessional Corporations: Legally authorized corporations owned and managed by one or more professionals (medical, dental, legal) in which the income is ascribed primarily to the professional activities of the owners or stockholders.Oxytricha: A genus of ciliate protozoa having a unique cursorial type of locomotion.Nocardia Infections: Infections with bacteria of the genus NOCARDIA.Nocardia: A genus of gram-positive, aerobic bacteria whose species are widely distributed and are abundant in soil. Some strains are pathogenic opportunists for humans and animals.Radiology Information Systems: Information systems, usually computer-assisted, designed to store, manipulate, and retrieve information for planning, organizing, directing, and controlling administrative activities associated with the provision and utilization of radiology services and facilities.Computer Storage Devices: Devices capable of receiving data, retaining data for an indefinite or finite period of time, and supplying data upon demand.Nasal Decongestants: Drugs designed to treat inflammation of the nasal passages, generally the result of an infection (more often than not the common cold) or an allergy related condition, e.g., hay fever. The inflammation involves swelling of the mucous membrane that lines the nasal passages and results in inordinate mucus production. The primary class of nasal decongestants are vasoconstrictor agents. (From PharmAssist, The Family Guide to Health and Medicine, 1993)Histamine H1 Antagonists, Non-Sedating: A class of non-sedating drugs that bind to but do not activate histamine receptors (DRUG INVERSE AGONISM), thereby blocking the actions of histamine or histamine agonists. These antihistamines represent a heterogenous group of compounds with differing chemical structures, adverse effects, distribution, and metabolism. Compared to the early (first generation) antihistamines, these non-sedating antihistamines have greater receptor specificity, lower penetration of BLOOD-BRAIN BARRIER, and are less likely to cause drowsiness or psychomotor impairment.Pseudoephedrine: A phenethylamine that is an isomer of EPHEDRINE which has less central nervous system effects and usage is mainly for respiratory tract decongestion.Nonprescription Drugs: Medicines that can be sold legally without a DRUG PRESCRIPTION.Loratadine: A second-generation histamine H1 receptor antagonist used in the treatment of allergic rhinitis and urticaria. Unlike most classical antihistamines (HISTAMINE H1 ANTAGONISTS) it lacks central nervous system depressing effects such as drowsiness.Cetirizine: A potent second-generation histamine H1 antagonist that is effective in the treatment of allergic rhinitis, chronic urticaria, and pollen-induced asthma. Unlike many traditional antihistamines, it does not cause drowsiness or anticholinergic side effects.Encyclopedias as Topic: Works containing information articles on subjects in every field of knowledge, usually arranged in alphabetical order, or a similar work limited to a special field or subject. (From The ALA Glossary of Library and Information Science, 1983)