Biomedical Aspects of Histamine Current Perspectives
Since its identification by Sir Henry H. Dale a century ago, histamine has become one of the most important multifunctional biogenic amines in the field of biomedicine. The pharmacological effects of histamine are mediated through four types of membrane h
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Mohammed Shahid · Nancy Khardori · Rahat Ali Khan · Trivendra Tripathi Editors
Biomedical Aspects of Histamine Current Perspectives
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Editors Associate Professor Mohammed Shahid Department of Microbiology Jawaharlal Nehru Medical College & Hospital Aligarh Muslim University 202002 Aligarh India [email protected]
Prof. Rahat Ali Khan Department of Pharmacology Jawaharlal Nehru Medical College & Hospital Aligarh Muslim University 202002 Aligarh India [email protected]
Prof. Nancy Khardori Division of Infectious Diseases Department of Internal Medicine School of Medicine Southern Illinois University N. Rutledge 751 62702 Springfield IL, USA [email protected] Dr. Trivendra Tripathi Department of Biochemistry Jawaharlal Nehru Medical College & Hospital Aligarh Muslim University 202002 Aligarh India [email protected]
ISBN 978-90-481-9348-6 e-ISBN 978-90-481-9349-3 DOI 10.1007/978-90-481-9349-3 Springer Dordrecht Heidelberg London New York Library of Congress Control Number: 2010935671 © Springer Science+Business Media B.V. 2010 No part of this work may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, microfilming, recording or otherwise, without written permission from the Publisher, with the exception of any material supplied specifically for the purpose of being entered and executed on a computer system, for exclusive use by the purchaser of the work. Printed on acid-free paper Springer is part of Springer Science+Business Media (www.springer.com)
Foreword
Histamine enjoys a wide spectrum of actions spanning across many organ systems. It is a biogenic amine formed by decarboxylation of the amine acid histidine. Its actions are mediated through a specific receptor of which four isoforms have been characterized so far. All these are seven transmembrane G-protein coupled receptors. Medical students often get introduced to actions of histamine following study of ‘wheal and flare’ phenomenon associated with histamine release in the skin, and to a lesser extent following study of gastric acid output. The receptor involved in the former is H1 isoform whereas H2 isoform is involved in the latter. The finding that histamine is a major mediator of allergic response resulted in the discovery of first antagonist by Bovet and Staub in 1937. Soon the drugs inhibiting actions began to appear in 1940s. Initially these were classified as ‘antihistamines’ but now they are classified according to their receptor isoform specificity. In the last decade two additional receptor isoforms have been characterized and each subtype finds a wide tissue distribution. H1 isoform was at first thought to be strictly confined to the vascular endothelium and smooth muscle cells. Now we know it to exist in neural tissue also. In the tubero-mamillary nucleus of the hypothalamus, it acts as an autoreceptor inhibiting further release of histamine. Here it is possibly involved in control of circadian rhythm and wakefulness. Similarly existence of H2 rec
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