Histidine decarboxylases from bacteria that colonise the human respiratory tract

We investigated whether production of histamine by bacteria isolated from sputum of patients with infective lung diseases could be attributed to the presence of histidine decarboxylase (HD). Twenty gram-positive and 20 gram-negative organisms were studied for their ability to decarboxylate 14C-histidine in vitro over the pH range 4.5-7.5. Of the bacteria investigated, lysates from the gram-negative species Haemophilus influenzae, H. parainfluenzae, Moraxella (Branhamella) catarrhalis and Pseudomonas aeruginosa liberated 14CO2 and histamine from 14C-histidine in the presence of the cofactor pyridoxal phosphate. In contrast, results obtained in the absence of cofactor were similar to those of negative (lysate-free) controls suggesting that the HD enzymes of these species resembled those previously described in other gram-negative bacteria. No HD activity was detected over this pH range in lysates from gram-positive species. This finding correlated with earlier observations that these gram-positive organisms did not produce histamine in vitro.