title: Mechanisms of mast cell signaling in anaphylaxis.
abstract: The recent development of a consensus definition and proposed diagnostic criteria for anaphylaxis offers promise for research efforts and a better understanding of the epidemiology and pathogenesis of this enigmatic and life-threatening disease. This review examines basic principles and recent research advances in the mechanisms of mast cell signaling believed to underlie anaphylaxis. The unfolding complexity of mast cell signaling suggests that the system is sensitive to regulation by any of several individual signaling pathways and intermediates and that complementary pathways regulate mast cell activation by amplified signals. The signaling events underlying anaphylactic reactions have largely been identified through experiments in genetically modified mice and supported by biochemical studies of mast cells derived from these mice. These studies have revealed that signaling pathways exist to both upregulate and downregulate mast cell responses. In this review we will thus describe the key molecular players in these pathways in the context of anaphylaxis.
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Allergic Diseases, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA. dmetcalfe@niaid.nih.gov.0091-6749
authors.forename: Dean D
authors.initials: DD
authors.lastname: Metcalfe
authors.forename: Richard D
authors.initials: RD
authors.lastname: Peavy
authors.forename: Alasdair M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Gilfillan
mesh_terms: D048868:Adaptor Proteins, Signal Transducing / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism; D000485:Allergens / Q000276:immunology; D000707:Anaphylaxis / Q000276:immunology* / Q000378:metabolism; D000818:Animals; D015550:Cell Degranulation / Q000276:immunology; D016207:Cytokines / Q000097:blood; D006801:Humans; D007073:Immunoglobulin E / Q000097:blood; D008407:Mast Cells / Q000276:immunology* / Q000378:metabolism; D051379:Mice; D011494:Protein Kinases / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism; D017455:Receptors, IgE / Q000276:immunology* / Q000378:metabolism; D015398:Signal Transduction / Q000276:immunology*
chemical_list: D048868:Adaptor Proteins, Signal Transducing; D000485:Allergens; D016207:Cytokines; D017455:Receptors, IgE; D007073:Immunoglobulin E; D011494:Protein Kinases