The role of histamine in the acute inflammatory responses to intradermal platelet activating factor

1. The role of histamine in PAF-induced acute inflammatory responses (flare and weal) in the skin has been evaluated in a series of three separate studies. 2. Terfenadine, a potent H1-selective histamine antagonist virtually abolished the flare response and significantly inhibited the weal response. 3. Histamine depletion in the skin using compound 48/80 resulted in similar effects on the flare and weal response. Two consecutive daily injections of compound 48/80 were found to deplete comprehensively skin sites of histamine and the ability of skin to respond to PAF was completely restored within 2 weeks of compound 48/80 treatment. 4. Intradermally injected PAF was associated with acute rises in plasma histamine in blood drawn from a draining vein with peak concentrations occurring within 5 min of injection. 5. No difference in PAF-induced flare and weal response was found between atopic and non-atopic subjects and this was reflected in the peak plasma histamine results. A significantly higher baseline plasma histamine was found in the atopic group, however, when compared with the non atopic group. 6. It is concluded that histamine has an important role in the acute inflammatory responses to intradermally injected PAF, although there does appear to be a significant direct vascular component in the PAF-induced weal response.