Many patients with chronic rhinitis complain of smell loss (hyposmia). While the infectious process, per se, may not be the definitive cause of the hyposmia it is an important contributing factor.

Chronic rhinitis is caused by local changes in the nasal cavity associated with bacterial fungal infections, allergic rhinitis or sinusitis. These changes are manifested by changes in the composition of the nasal mucus which bathes the structures of the nasal cavity. One characteristic nasal mucus change is manifested by macrophage activation. This activation is usually characterized by increased secretion of cytokines in the nasal mucus.

In order to verify and document these putative changes we compared nasal mucus secretion in a group of patients with chronic rhinitis with that of a group of controls who did not have chronic rhinitis. We did this by comparing various cytokines in nasal mucus from patients and controls by use of a specific and sensitive immunoassay technique.

Results demonstrated that some cytokines, IL1ra, ILR2, IL2R, IL6, IL18 and TNF alpha were increased.

Results also demonstrated that the cytokine IL1 was not increased.

These results indicate that inflammation associated with chronic rhinitis is modulated by IL1ra and IL2R but not IL1. The basis for this discrepancy is not defined.

This information will be presented at the Experimental Biology meeting, San Diego, CA, April 6, 2008 and will be published online in FASEB J, 2008 entitled “Macrophage Activation of TNF alpha in Nasal Mucus of Patients with Chronic Rhinitis” by L. Schmidt, I. Velicu, and R.I. Henkin.