Targeting of histamine producing cells by EGCG: a green dart against inflammation?
The human body is made of some 250 different cell types. From them, only a small subset of cell types is able to produce histamine. They include some neurons, enterochromaffin-like cells, gastrin-containing cells, mast cells, basophils, and monocytes/macrophages, among others. In spite of the reduced number of these histamine-producing cell types, they are involved in very different physiological processes. Their deregulation is related with many highly prevalent, as well as emergent and rare diseases, mainly those described as inflammation-dependent pathologies, including mastocytosis, basophilic leukemia, gastric ulcer, Crohn disease, and other inflammatory bowel diseases. Furthermore, oncogenic transformation switches some non-histamine-producing cells to a histamine producing phenotype. This is the case of melanoma, small cell lung carcinoma, and several types of neuroendocrine tumors. The bioactive compound epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG), a major component of green tea, has been shown to target histamine-producing cells producing great alterations in their behavior, with relevant effects on their proliferative potential, as well as their adhesion, migration, and invasion potentials. In fact, EGCG has been shown to have potent anti-inflammatory, anti-tumoral, and anti-angiogenic effects and to be a potent inhibitor of the histamine-producing enzyme, histidine decarboxylase. Herein, we review the many specific effects of EGCG on concrete molecular targets of histamine-producing cells and discuss the relevance of these data to support the potential therapeutic interest of this compound to treat inflammation-dependent diseases.
Melgarejo
Esther
E
Departamento de Biología Molecular y Bioquímica, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de Málaga and CIBER de Enfermedades Raras (CIBERER), Málaga, Spain.
Medina
Miguel Angel
MA
Sánchez-Jiménez
Francisca
F
Urdiales
José Luis
JL
D000893:Anti-Inflammatory Agents / Q000378:metabolism; D001491:Basophils / Q000187:drug effects; D002392:Catechin / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000494:pharmacology; D006632:Histamine / Q000096:biosynthesis*; D006801:Humans; D007249:Inflammation / Q000188:drug therapy*; D008264:Macrophages / Q000187:drug effects; D008533:Megakaryocytes / Q000187:drug effects; D009000:Monocytes / Q000187:drug effects; D009474:Neurons / Q000187:drug effects; D013662:Tea / Q000737:chemistry
D000893:Anti-Inflammatory Agents; D013662:Tea; D006632:Histamine; D002392:Catechin; C045651:epigallocatechin gallate