Allergen Sensitivity in Mice Models

BALB/cJ and BALB/c-JH^-/- mice were obtained from the Jackson Laboratory (Bar Harbor, ME). Female mice (6–12 weeks old) were used in all experiments. All animal experiments and handling procedures were approved by the Mayo Clinic Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee and performed according to its guidelines. The allergen extracts, including Alternaria, Aspergillus fumigatus, and HDM, were purchased from Greer Laboratories (Lenoir, NC). Endotoxin was undetectable in all of these extracts (<10 ng/mg extract). Endotoxin-free OVA was prepared in our laboratory, as previously described [11 (link)].