Effect of Chinese herbal medicines and disodium cromoglycate on IgE-dependent histamine release from mouse cultured mast cells.
We examined the effect of anti-allergic Chinese herbal medicines such as Ma-Xing-Gan-Shi-Tang (MXGST) and Xiao-Feng-San (XFS), and a mast cell stabilizer, disodium cromoglycate (DSCG) on histamine release from mouse cultured mast cells. The mast cells (ILMCMC) were obtained by culturing mouse bone marrow cells for 3-6 weeks in the presence of IL-3. Some of the cells (FMCMC) were further cultured with a fibroblast cell line, 3T3 for 3 weeks. FMCMC had safranin-positive granules and released histamine in response to compound 48/80, whereas ILMCMC failed to do so. MXGST and XFS at 4-40 micrograms/ml inhibited IgE-dependent histamine release from ILMCMC but not from FMCMC. On the contrary, DSCG at 10(-4) M inhibited histamine release from FMCMC but not from ILMCMC. Chinese herbal medicines and DSCG may act on different types of mast cells.