Exogenous Histamine Research Articles

Degranulation of mast cells in the chick chorioallantoic membrane does not increase macromolecular extravasation during normal angiogenesis.

To test the hypothesis that stimulation of mast cell degranulation during normal angiogenesis in the chick chorioallantoic membrane (CAM) serves to acutely activate macromolecular transendonelial pathways. Using shell-less cultures of 6-day-old chick embryos, efflux of fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC)-dextran 150 from CAM microvessels was evaluated, after applications of compound 48/80 or exogenous histamine, by computer-assisted videodensitometric analyses. Real-time confocal imaging enabled optical differentiation of first-order pre- and postcapillaries from the capillary networks. Cytologic ultrastructure of the microvascular units was also evaluated. Although endogenous histamine was measurable and its concentration was increased after application of compound 48/80, segmental endothelia of the CAM microvascular units consistently restricted extravasation of FITC-dextran 150. Furthermore, intravascular injections of histamine also failed to induce interendothelial gap formation or macromolecular flux across the segmental CAM endothelia. These results are consistent with the interpretation that histamine-activated transendothelial pathways are inactive in the CAM at day 6. Whether such inactivity serves to retard facilitation of CAM angiogenesis by activated mast cells remains to be tested.

Maturational changes in responses of tissue and airway resistance to histamine.

We determined how postnatal maturation affects the relative contributions of airways and lung parenchyma to pulmonary resistance (RL) and whether there are developmental differences in their respective responses to constrictive agents. We studied open-chest ventilated anesthetized piglets of three ages: 2-4 days, 2-3 wk, and 10 wk. RL as partitioned into tissue (Rti) and airway (Raw) resistance by means of alveolar capsules under baseline conditions and after intravenous histamine. Postnatal maturation was associated with a progressive decline in RL, Rti and Raw and with an increase in the contribution of Rti and RL from 38 +/- 8% at 2-4 days to 72 +/- 2% at both 2-3 and 10 wk. Histamine caused RL to increase at all ages. When partitioned into Rti and Raw, the percent increase in Rti significantly exceeded that of Raw at both 2-4 days and 2-3 wk. In contrast, the percent increase in Raw significantly exceeded that of Rti at 10 wk. Administration of atropine before histamine in piglets aged 10 wk reduced the response of Rti and Raw to histamine. Histamine-induced responses of RL were blocked by prior H1-receptor blockade with pyrilamine (2 mg/kg). These results indicate that 1) the contribution of Rti and Raw to RL changes during maturation and that 2) contractile responses to exogenous histamine are manifest predominantly in most distal airways and lung parenchyma during early postnatal life; with advancing maturation there is greater contribution of airways to the increase in RL induced by histamine.

The fade of gastrin-stimulated gastric acid secretion in the rat is due to depletion of releasable mucosal histamine.

The present study examines the applicability of the isolated, acid-secreting vascularly perfused rat stomach for long-term physiological and pharmacological studies. The model was used to study the fade of acid secretion during gastrin stimulation. The stomachs were stimulated by exogenous gastrin or histamine alone or in succession. Acid secretion and venous histamine concentrations were measured. Gastrin and histamine potently stimulated acid output, histamine-stimulated acid secretion was sustained for 300 min while gastrin-stimulated secretion peaked at 120 min and declined towards basal output at 300 min. Stomachs rendered tachyphylactic to gastrin could be re-stimulated by exogenous histamine. Venous histamine output during gastrin stimulation decreased in parallel to acid secretion. This, the acid-secreting, isolated vascularly perfused rat stomach can be used for physiological and pharmacological studies with histamine as stimulant for at least 300 min. The present results strongly indicate that the effect of gastrin on acid secretion is mediated by histamine, and that fade of acid secretion during stimulation with gastrin is due to depletion of releasable mucosal histamine.

Effect of dimaprit and cimetidine on the somatostatinergic system in the rat frontoparietal cortex

A recent study carried out by this laboratory demonstrated that exogenous histamine increases the somatostatin (SS) receptor/effector system in the rat frontoparietal cortex (Puebla and Arilla, 1995). In the present study we examined the participation of the H2-histaminergic system in this modulation by use of the H2-receptor agonist and antagonist dimaprit and cimetidine, respectively. Dimaprit administration [20 micrograms/rat, intracerebroventricularly (ICV)] to rats 2 hours before decapitation increased the number of SS receptors in the frontoparietal cortex without changing the affinity constant. Pretreatment with cimetidine (20 micrograms/rat, ICV) prevented the dimaprit-induced changes in SS binding in the frontoparietal cortex, whereas cimetidine alone (20 micrograms/rat, ICV) had no observable effect on this parameter. The in vitro addition of dimaprit or cimetidine to frontoparietal cortex membranes from untreated rats did not markedly affect the SS binding characteristics. Somatostatin caused a significantly higher inhibition of basal and forskolin (FK)-stimulated adenylyl cyclase (AC) activity in frontoparietal cortex membranes from dimaprit-treated rats than in controls, an effect that was prevented by pretreatment with cimetidine. No significant differences, however, were detected for the basal or FK-stimulated AC enzyme activity in the control, dimaprit-, and/or cimetidine-treated groups, which suggests no impairment of the AC catalytic subunit. In addition, the functional activity of the guanine nucleotide-binding inhibitory protein Gi, as measured by the capacity of the stable GTP analogue 5'-guanylylimidodiphosphate [Gpp(NH)p] to inhibit FK-stimulated AC activity, was not altered by dimaprit. Thus, the increased SS-mediated inhibition of AC activity observed in the dimaprit-treated rats may be caused by the increase in the number of SS receptors. Neither dimaprit nor cimetidine affected somatostatinlike immunoreactivity (SSLI) content. The present results, together with the fact that SS and histamine have been shown to influence locomotor activity and nociception in a similar manner, suggest that some of the neurotransmitter effects of SS may be modulated by histamine via H2-histaminergic receptors.

Histamine forming capacity (HFC) and its modulation by H3 receptor ligands in a model of bronchial hyper-responsiveness

The histamine forming capacity (HFC) of acutely challenged airways from sensitised guinea pigs was investigated. After exposure to nebulised bovine serum albumin (BSA) or normal saline, animals were sacrificed, the pulmonary HFC determined and concurrent in vitro histamine log concentration response curves were constructed for parenchymal strips and tracheal muscle, the latter was field stimulated to record neurogenic responses. Exposure to BSA increased the HFC above controls for 24 hours (p < 0.001) and log concentration response curves for the parenchymal strips were shifted slightly to the left with an increased maximum response. This change appeared 3 hours after exposure and remained elevated at 24 hours. Similar changes did not occur with the trachea. Pre-treatment with thioperamide augmented (p < 0.02) HFC and this increase was inhibited by alpha-methylhistamine (p < 0.05). A possible relationship may exist between increased responsiveness of lower airways to exogenous histamine and a raised endogenous formation, regulated by the H3 receptor.

H 1, H 2, and H 3 receptors contribute to drinking elicited by exogenous histamine and eating in rats

Roles for H 1, H 2, and H 3 receptor subtypes for drinking elicited by exogenous histamine and drinking elicited by eating was examined in adult male Sprague-Dawley rats. Drinking elicited by SC 5 mg/kg histamine was: (a) inhibited approximately 30% by H 1 antagonism using IP 1 mg/kg dexbrompheniramine (DXB); (b) inhibited approximately 30% by H 2 antagonism using IP 16 mg/kg cimetidine (C); (c) inhibited approximately 40% by H 3 antagonism using SC 10 mg/kg thioperamide (Th); (d) inhibited approximately 80% by combined h 1 and H 2 antagonism using IP DXB plus IP C; (e) inhibited approximately 85% by combined H 1 and H 3 antagonism using IP DXB plus SC Th; (f) inhibited approximately 70% by combined H 2 and H 3 antagonism using IP C plus SC Th; and (g) abolished by combined H 1, H 2, and H 3 antagonism using IP DXB plus IP C plus SC Th. For rats eating pellets and drinking after 24-h food deprivation: (a) systemic injections of DXB, C, and Th, sufficient to abolish drinking elicited by SC histamine, inhibited water/food ratio (W/F) by approximately 20%; (b) ICV injections (through a chronic cannula in a lateral ventricle) of 50 μg DXB plus 100 μg C plus 60 μg Th inhibited W/F by approximately 20%. For rats drinking after IG infusion (through a chronic gastric catheter) of 2 ml 1800 mOsm/kg NaCl: (a) systemic injections of DXB, C, and Th, sufficient to abolish drinking elicited by SC histamine, inhibited water intake by approximately 70%; (b) IP DXB alone and IP C alone failed to inhibit water intake; (c) IP Th alone inhibited water intake by approximately 20%; (d) IP DXB combined with IP C inhibited water intake by approximately 55%. The results demonstrate the involvement of H 1, H 2, and H 3 receptors for drinking elicited by exogenous histamine, and our findings extend the evidence for a role for endogenous histamine and H 1, H 2, and H 3 receptor subtypes for drinking elicited by eating, including drinking elicited by gastrointestinal osmotic consequences of eating that can increase systemic plasma osmolality.

Antihistamine effects of an ethanol extract from the white petals of Impatiens balsamina L

AbstractUsing blood pressure (BP) monitoring in ddY Mice administered exogenous histamine, we tried to characterize the antianaphylactic mechanisms of a 35% ethanol extract (IB) from the petals of Impatiens balsamina L. Histamine was suggested to act as an initiator of anaphylactic hypotension in mice. IB could incompletely inhibit the first stage of hypotension caused by histamine. The antianaphylactic effect of IB was demonstrated to be different from that of diphenhydramine (DPH) a typical H1 blocker.

THE ROLE OF HISTAMINE IN MEDIATING THE DECOMPENSATORY PHASE OF HEMORRHAGIC SHOCK IN THE RAT

Our laboratory has previously reported that plasma histamine levels rise significantly and coincidentally with the onset of the decompensatory phase of isobaric hemorrhagic shock in rats. The histamine levels seen in shock were comparable to those that induce profound vasodilatation in many vascular beds under normovolemic conditions. We, therefore, sought to determine whether the elevation in plasma histamine contributes to the cardiovascular collapse seen in the decompensatory phase of hemorrhagic shock. Sprague-Dawley rats were bled according to an isobaric bleeding protocol which maintained the mean arterial blood pressure (MAP) at 40 mmHg until death. Selected H1 (diphenhydramine) and/or H2 (cimetidine and famotidine) antagonists were administered at 75% of the estimated peak shed blood volume (PSBV), a point preceding the rise in plasma histamine. Plasma histamine levels in all groups were similar throughout the time course of hemorrhagic shock. None of the histamine receptor antagonists affected the time of onset or the rate of decompensation. Suspecting that hypotension may alter the animal's response to histamine, we investigated the effect of exogenous histamine administration on MAP before and after hemorrhage. In unbled animals, bolus histamine infusions (.6 mg/kg) dropped the MAP by 62.0 +/- 2.7 mmHg, however, in animals bled to 40 mmHg, histamine dropped the MAP by 7.2 +/- 2.7 mmHg (p = .002). On the basis of the results of these two interventions, we conclude that histamine is not an important mediator of the cardiovascular collapse seen in the decompensatory phase of hemorrhagic shock in the rat.

Histamine N-methyltransferase inhibitor potentiates histamine- and antigen-induced airway microvascular leakage in guinea pigs

Background: Histamine N-methyltransferase (HMT) modulates histamine- and antigen-induced bronchoconstriction. However, it is unclear whether vascular permeability evoked by an allergic reaction can be exaggerated by inhibition of HMT activity. Methods: We studied the effects of intravenously injected SKF 91488, a specific HMT inhibitor, on increases in plasma extravasation induced by intravenously injected histamine in unsensitized guinea pigs and by intravenously injected ovalbumin antigen in guinea pigs sensitized to ovalbumin in vivo with Evans blue dye as a marker. Results: Pretreatment with SKF 91488 shifted, in a dose-dependent fashion, the dose-response curves of the leakage of dye to histamine to lower concentrations in the trachea, main bronchi, and nasal mucosa. Likewise, pretreatment with SKF 91488 (20 mg/kg intravenously) significantly increased the leakage of dye induced by ovalbumin antigen (200 μg/kg intravenously) in three parts of the airway ( p < 0.05). In contrast to SKF 91488, intravenously injected aminoguanidine, a specific inhibitor of diamine oxidase (16 mg/kg intravenously), did not alter the leakage of dye induced by histamine (from 0.001 μg/kg to 10 μg/kg intravenously) ( p > 0.20). HMT activities were observed in the nasal mucosa, as well as in the trachea and main bronchi, as shown in a previous study. Conclusion: These findings suggest that HMT modulates the effects of exogenous histamine and endogenously released histamine induced by antigen challenge on plasma extravasation in the airway in guinea pigs in vivo. (J A LLERGY C LIN I MMUNOL 1995;96:910-6.)

Repeated inhalation challenge with exogenous and endogenous histamine released by acetaldehyde inhalation in asthmatic patients.

We previously reported that inhaled acetaldehyde, a metabolite of ethanol and a main factor in alcohol-induced asthma, causes bronchoconstriction indirectly through endogenously released histamine in asthmatic subjects. No study has examined the difference between tachyphylaxis in response to endogenous as opposed to exogenous histamine. Therefore, we examined tachyphylaxis occurring in response to repeated inhalation of histamine or acetaldehyde in nine asthmatic subjects. The mean acetaldehyde concentration causing a 20% decrease in FEV1 increased significantly from 18.4 (geometric standard error of the mean (GSEM = 0.14) to 45.2 (GSEM = 0.14) mg/ml over a period of 1 h (p < 0.002), whereas the mean histamine concentrations causing a 20% decrease in FEV1 were identical. No correlations were observed between the change in bronchial responsiveness to each solution and the change in baseline FEV1. These results suggest that tachyphylaxis in response to histamine is observed only when the latter is released endogenously. We believe that this is the first report suggesting tachyphylaxis caused by endogenous histamine.

The effects of exogenous histamine in isolated rat hearts.

The role of histamine in cardiac physiology and pathophysiology is not clarified, but is dependent on species. The effects of exogenous histamine in Langendorff-perfused rat hearts were investigated. 1 mM, 100, 10, 1 and 0.1 microM of histamine (n = 7 each) as 15 min infusions were employed in a dose-response study, and compared to control perfused hearts (n = 7). In another experimental series, 100 microM histamine (n = 15) was added during reperfusion after 25 min global ischemia, and compared to control ischemia-reperfusion (n = 15). The maximal response to histamine in the dose-response study (100 microM) was an increase of left ventricular developed pressure to 126 +/- 8% of initial value (mean +/- SEM, p < 0.04), and increase of coronary flow to 152+6% (p < 0.02) after 5 min infusion. 100 microM histamine did not significantly influence heart rate or rhythm. The lowest concentration (0.1 microM) did not have effects cardiac performance. Reperfusion with histamine for 2 min after ischemia reduced left ventricular developed pressure to 68 +/- 10% of initial value versus 116+17% in ischemic controls (p < 0.05), and increased left ventricular end-diastolic pressure to 24 +/- 8 mmHg compared to 6 +/- 2 mmHg in controls (p < 0.04). Left ventricular pressures were similar in hearts reperfused with histamine and in ischemic controls for the rest of the observation. Coronary flow increased during reperfusion in hearts given histamine. Histamine had a dose-dependent positive inotropic and vasodilatory effect in isolated rat hearts. Exogenous histamine had only minor effects on post-ischemic cardiac function.

Mast Cell Activation Induces P-Selectin-Dependent Leukocyte Rolling and Adhesion in Postcapillary Venules in Vivo

As studied by intravital microscopy, local challenge with the mast cell secretagogue compound 48/80 was found to increase the leukocyte rolling fraction, decrease rolling velocity and induce firm leukocyte adhesion in postcapillary venules of the rat mesentery. These effects of compound 48/80 were inhibited by a monoclonal anti-P-selectin antibody, but not by combined treatment with H1 and H2 histamine-receptor antagonists. Moreover, the response to compound 48/80 was not mimicked by exogenous histamine or 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT). These novel findings indicate that mediator(s) other than histamine and 5-HT evoke P-selectin-dependent leukocyte rolling and thereby promote firm leukocyte adhesion in mast cell-dependent inflammation.

Antigen-induced airway responses are inhibited by a potassium channel opener.

We have investigated the effect of a potassium channel opener, BRL 38227, on antigen-induced bronchoconstriction and airway microvascular leakage in sensitized guinea pigs by simultaneously measuring pulmonary resistance (Rl) and extravasation of Evans blue dye. Guinea pigs were sensitized 3 wk before experimentation with ovalbumin (OA) and aluminum hydroxide. The trachea was cannulated, and lungs were mechanically ventilated. All animals were pretreated 30 min before experimentation with atropine (1 mg/kg intravenously) and propranolol 1 mg/kg to block muscarinic and beta-adrenergic responses, respectively. BRL 38227 (200 micrograms/kg) was administered intravenously 1 min before intravenous dye injection (30 mg/kg); OA (3 mg/ml) was inhaled using an ultrasonic nebulizer (for 30 s) 1 min after dye injection. BRL 38227 significantly inhibited OA-induced bronchoconstrictor response (p < 0.01) and plasma leakage in trachea (p < 0.05) and main bronchi (p < 0.05). BRL 38227 also had an inhibitory effect on exogenous histamine- and leukotriene-induced bronchoconstriction and microvascular leakage. However, BRL 38227 did not affect OA-induced histamine release from minced lung tissues in sensitized guinea pigs. We conclude that the allergic bronchoconstrictor response and airway plasma leakage are inhibited by a potassium channel opener, possibly as a result of its effect on the airway smooth muscle and the postcapillary venule level.

Histamine induced pulmonary vasodilatation in the rat: site of action and changes in chronic hypoxia

Histamine constricts postcapillary lung vessels and also causes dilatation, site unknown. In chronically hypoxic rats, pulmonary arterioles are muscularized and histamine-containing mast cells increase. We wanted to determine a) whether vasoreactivity to histamine changes in chronic hypoxia; b) whether dilatation is due to H2 receptors; and c) which vessels dilate. We perfused isolated lungs of normal (C) and chronically hypoxic (CH) rats. Histamine was tested during hypoxic vasoconstriction. To examine effects on arteries alone, we raised alveolar (inflation) pressure above outflow pressure; during inflation, pressure/flow (P/Q) lines were measured during normoxia, and hypoxia, and after histamine during continued hypoxia. Dose-related dilatation was seen, which was abolished by cimetidine and enhanced in CH rats. A mast cell-discharging agent, but not exogenous histamine, caused constriction, which was abolished by chlorpheniramine. P/Q lines differed in C and CH rats in a manner which suggests that hypoxia constricts larger "extra-alveolar" vessels in C rats, but mainly muscularized arterioles exposed to alveolar pressure in CH rats. Histamine restored the P/Q line to nearly its normoxic position; it therefore dilated those vessels which constrict in hypoxia in each rat group. It is concluded that histamine has a strong H2 dilator effect, enhanced in chronic hypoxia, which might be an important attenuating factor in hypoxic pulmonary hypertension.

Evidence for histamine uptake by murine hematopoietic progenitors.

Based on previous evidence for a role of exogenous and endogenous histamine, we have examined whether this amine can effectively interact with hematopoietic progenitors. We show that tritiated histamine is retained preferentially by bone marrow cells as compared with peritoneal, thymic or spleen cells. Cells interacting with histamine copurify with progenitors in the low density bone marrow fraction. Among this cell population, 5% are labeled as assessed by autoradiography. The characteristics of histamine retention by these cells are consistent with active uptake rather than binding to a known receptor since (a) it is almost completely abrogated at 4 degrees C, by sodium azide or chloroquine, (b) histamine is internalized, and (c) relatively high concentrations of classical receptor antagonists are required to inhibit histamine retention by bone marrow cells.

Epithelial modulation of cholinergic responses in human tracheal smooth muscle.

The aim of this study was to test the hypothesis that the increase in maximal responses to histamine, acetylcholine, and cholinergic electrical field stimulation and decreased relaxant responses to isoprenaline reported in asthmatic tracheal smooth muscle result from the epithelial damage observed in asthma. The effect of mechanical removal of the epithelium on contractile and relaxant responses was examined in normal human postmortem tracheal smooth muscle strips. The epithelium was removed from alternate tracheal strips obtained from 25 subjects within 14 h of sudden death from nonrespiratory causes. In paired samples, contractile cholinergic and inhibitory nonadrenergic, noncholinergic (i-NANC) neural responses to electrical field stimulation and responses to exogenous histamine, potassium chloride, theophylline, and isoprenaline were unaffected by removal of the epithelium. However, the maximal isometric tension (Tmax) induced by methacholine increased by 70.1 +/- 19.8% (mean +/- SE, p < 0.005, n = 9), without alteration in EC50. These data suggest that disruption of the epithelium is unlikely to be the explanation of the abnormalities observed in trachea in fatal asthma. Explanations of the increase in maximal response to methacholine following removal of the epithelium include loss of an epithelium-derived relaxant factor released via an epithelial muscarinic receptor or loss of a specific permeability or metabolic barrier imposed by the epithelium for methacholine.

Effects of histamine on 5-hydroxytryptaminergic neuronal activity in the rat hypothalamus

Effects of pharmacological manipulations which mimic or enhance histaminergic neuronal transmission were determined on the activity of 5-hydroxytryptaminergic neurons projecting to the hypothalamus of male rats. Intracerebroventricular administration of histamine decreased 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT) and increased 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid (5-HIAA) concentrations in several hypothalamic nuclei; these effects were blocked by the histamine H 1 receptor antagonist mepyramine but not the histamine H 2 receptor antagonist zolantidine. Blockade of the 5-HT reuptake system by fluoxetine did not prevent histamine-induced decreases in 5-HT concentrations suggesting that histamine is not transported into nerve terminals via the 5-HT reuptake system to subsequently displace 5-HT stores. These data suggest that exogenous histamine increases 5-hydroxytryptaminergic neuronal activity through an action at histamine H 1 receptors. In contrast, neither the histamine H 3 receptor antagonist thioperamide, the histamine- N-methyltransferase inhibitor metoprine, nor conmbined thioperamide-metorphine treatment affected concentrations of 5-HT or 5-HIAA suggesting these agents, which purportedly enhance endogenous histaminergic transmission, do not affect 5-hydroxytryptaminergic neuronal activity. These results reveal that procedures commonly employed to study central actions of histamine differentially affect 5-hydroxytryptaminergic neuronal activity in the rat hypothalamus.

Possible participation of histamine H3-receptors in the regulation of anaphylactic histamine release from isolated rat peritoneal mast cells.

Anaphylactic histamine release from isolated rat peritoneal mast cells was concentration-dependently blocked by a 5-min treatment with exogenous histamine at 0.9 and 9 microM and enhanced by a 20- to 30-min treatment with thioperamide (H3-antagonist) at 3 microM with significance, but little affected by mepyramine (H1-antagonist) and cimetidine (H2-antagonist) at the cell concentration of 10(6) mast cells/ml. At a low concentration of mast cells (10(4) mast cells/ml), (R)-alpha-methylhistamine (alpha-MH), an H3-agonist, at 0.9-90 microM also inhibited the release in a concentration-dependent fashion. Thioperamide, but neither mepyramine nor cimetidine, significantly restored the decreased release by alpha-MH. However, the complete restoration by thioperamide could not be achieved because the drug itself slightly but concentration-dependently inhibited anaphylactic histamine release. On the other hand, not only betahistine and dimaprit but also alpha-MH did not suppress histamine release from the mast cells induced by compound 48/80. In rat plasma, considerable levels of histamine were detected. From these results, it is strongly suggested that histamine H3-like receptors are largely responsible for the negative feedback regulation of the anaphylactic histamine release from rat peritoneal mast cells.

Abnormalities in histamine pharmacodynamics in chronic urticaria.

Histamine plays a key role in the pathogenesis of chronic urticaria (CU). The authors of this paper have studied the effects of ingested histamine in 25 patients with CU. A 120 mg dose of histamine, well-tolerated in the healthy subject, was instillated into the duodenum. Concomitantly, plasma histamine (H) levels and plasma and urinary methylhistamine (MH) levels were measured. Intraduodenal administration of histamine was responsible for the development of an attack of urticaria in 64% of patients, while control subjects were asymptomatic. Plasma histamine levels were significantly higher after digestive histamine challenge (DHC) in patients with CU compared with controls. An abnormal increase in plasma histamine was observed in 72% of them. Plasma MH exhibited the same kinetic behaviour with a usually delayed time-pattern. Urinary MH concentration was higher in patients presenting with early-onset urticaria during the first hour than in those with the late-onset type between 1 and 12 hr after DHC. The coefficient of methylation (plasma MH/MH+H) was not significantly different in patients presenting with an attack of urticaria following DHC and in other subjects. Urinary excretion of MH and urinary flow increased significantly in patients presenting with an attack of urticaria following DHC which corresponds to increased absorption of histamine during the 5-hr period following DHC and its role on excretion by the kidney via vasodilation which it induces. This study demonstrates the abnormal frequency of disturbances in the metabolism of exogenous histamine in patients with CU. Increased plasma H accounts for the abnormal passage of H across the intestinal barrier which can result either from intestinal hyperpermeability and/or a deficit in the enzymatic catabolism of histamine. The systems of methylation and urinary clearance of MH appear to be effective. It is thus postulated that there is a deficit in diamine oxidase (DAO) in the enterocyte. The lack of correlation between the kinetic behaviour of plasma H and the onset of urticaria draws attention to the extent of individual variability in skin reactivity to histamine.

Electrical field stimulation causes oxidation of exogenous histamine in Krebs-Henseleit buffer: A potential source of error in studies of isolated airways

Electric field stimulation (EFS) relaxes human histamine-precontracted airways in vitro. This relaxation is only partly neurally mediated. Nonneural relaxation has been also shown in blood vessels and is due to the generation of oxygen radicals by EFS. In isolated airways the origin of the nonneural component of the relaxation is not clear. Because exogenous catecholamines are oxidized during EPS of carbogenated Krebs-Henseleit (K-H) buffer, we questioned whether this is also the case for exogenous histamine. Human airways precontracted with histamine or methacholine were exposed to either EFS-stimulated carbogenated K-H buffer that also contained histamine or methacholine or unstimulated buffer. Airways exposed to EFS-stimulated buffer that contained histamine relaxed, whereas airways exposed to buffer containing methacholine or exposed to unstimulated buffer did not. It appeared that the histamine concentrations in the organ baths decreased during 30 min of EFS. This decrease was significantly reduced in the presence of ascorbic acid. We conclude that EFS causes oxidation of histamine in carbogenated K-H buffer, and this may at least partly explain the nonneural component of EFS-induced relaxations of precontracted human isolated airways. Therefore, histamine should not be used to induce precontraction in EFS experiments.