NK cells appear early during the allergic inflammatory response
Leukocyte sub-populations were furthermore identified in nasal lavage
samples by FACS (the gating strategy is outlined in Fig. 2, A ).
As expected, eosinophils were rapidly recruited, as early as 1 hr
post-challenge, and remained elevated for 48 hrs after the challenge
(Fig. 2, B ). Neutrophils were the most abundant population,
peaking 1 hr after the challenge and returning to baseline levels at 24
hrs (Fig. 2, B ). Monocyte and lymphoid cell recruitment was also
observed after the allergen challenge. Interestingly, NK cells were
recruited as early as 1 h after the challenge, persisted for 6 hrs
before falling to their baseline levels. No significant leukocyte
kinetics were observed after diluent challenges.