Hypersensitivity Reactions









- Total types:Â Five.
- Mnemonic for first four: ACID
- A: Anaphylaxis (Type 1).
- C: Cytotoxic (Type 2) â Antibody against cells
- I: Immune Complex Mediated (Type 3).
- D: Delayed Cell mediated Response(Type 4).

Types Overview
Type | Examples |
Type 1 (Anaphylaxis) Immediate IgE mediated, Mast cell degranulation | - Allergies (dermatitis, rhinitis, conjunctivitis) - Bronchial asthma (atopy - chromosome 5) - Casoni test (Echinococcus) - Drugs (penicillin) - Theobald Smith phenomena, PK reaction Mnemonic: ABCD (for examples) |
Type 2 (Cytotoxic) Antibody-mediated Antibody vs cell surface/matrix Ag | - Myasthenia Gravis - Blood transfusion reactions - Graves disease - Goodpasture syndrome - Immune hemolytic anemia (AIHA) - ITP - Rh incompatibility - RHD - Pemphigus - Pernicious anemia Mnemonic: "My blood group is Rh positive P" |
Type 3 (Immune Complex) Immune Complex Mediated Ag-Ab complex deposition | - SLE - Serum Sickness - Shick test (C. diphtheriae) - HSP (IgA vasculitis) - Arthus reaction - Raji reaction - Reactive arthritis - PSGN (cola urine) - PAN Mnemonic: SHARP |
Type 4 (Delayed) Cell-mediated T-cell mediated | ⢠Granulomas ⢠Skin Tests: ⌠Mantoux Test (for Tuberculosis) ⌠Lepromin Test ⢠IBD (Crohn's Disease) ⢠Multiple sclerosis ⢠Contact Dermatitis: ⌠Worldwide common cause: Poison Ivy ⌠In India (especially among females): ⪠Detergent ⪠Artificial Jewellery (Nickel, Cadmium) |
Type 5 (Stimulatory) Receptor-mediated (Controv.) Antibodies vs cellular receptors | - Myasthenia Gravis (AChR Ab), - Graves disease (TSHR Ab). (If Type 5 not option, mark Type 2) |
Controversial Entities/Combinations:
Condition | Hypersensitivity Type(s) |
Rheumatoid Arthritis | Type 3 > Type 4 Scleromalacia Perforans â Type 3 |
Hypersensitivity Pneumonitis | Type 4 > 3 |
SLE | Type 2 and Type 3 Mnemonic: Flip 'S' â 2, Flip 'E' â 3 |
Transplant Rejection | ă
¤ |
⢠Hyperacute | Type 2 |
⢠Acute | Type 2 and Type 4 |
⢠Chronic | Type 4 |
Â
Type 1 Hypersensitivity
First Exposure
- Allergen interact with
- Naive CD4 T cells (via dendrtic cells) â Activate into Th2 cells
- B cells â Activated B cells
- Activated B cell in turn interact with Th2 cells â Causes Isotype switching â B cell releases Allergen specific IgE
- Allergen specific IgE binds to Mast cells remain ready for next exposure of allergen
- Stain for mast cell â Toluidine blue
Â

Re Exposure

Immediate Phase:
- Occurs within minutes.
- Allergen crosslinks IgE on mast cells.
- This leads to a degranulation explosion.
- Vasodilatation, vascular permeability, bronchoconstriciton, â mucus produciton
- Preformed Mediators
- Histamine:
- Earliest
- Causes vasodilation and itching.
- Tryptase:
- Acts as a mast cell marker.
- Protease
- Enzymes
- Others
- Leukotrienes:
- Cause bronchospasm and mucus production.
- Prostaglandins
Late Phase:
- Eosinophils and other inflammatory cells arrive.
- Chemokines call in backup cells.
- Epithelial damage, tissue damage, fibrosis
- Occurs after a few hours.
- Results in more inflammation and tissue damage.
Questions
- Most important cell in
- Immediate phase â Mast cells
- Late phase â Eosinophils
- Overall â Mast cells
- Earliest released â Histamine
- Most important anitbody â IgE
Tests:
- Skin test
- ELISAÂ for allergen-specific IgE
Examples:
- Anaphylaxis (e.g., bee sting, food, drugs)
- Allergic asthma



