The Contribution of cocoa additive to cigarette smoking addiction

Page 78 of 207 RIVM report 650270002
Histamine
were administered to twelve patients (8 with metastatic melanoma and 4 with
metastatic renal cell carcinoma). Histamine was administered slowly by
subcutaneous injection over 20 minutes. Serial blood samples were collected during
the first 240 min for analysis of serum histamine. The patient population was
predominantly Caucasian (92%) and male (83%) with an average age of 52.3 years.
Histamine had t1/2 12.7 min and Vd 66.0 l (39) (the histamine dose was not
mentioned in the abstract).
Critical assessment
14 C and 3 H-Histamine studies showed that histamine is absorbed through the
pulmonary system. Almost all mammalian tissues contain histamine in amounts
ranging from less than 1µg up to more than 100 µg/g tissue.
All mammalian tissues that contain histamine are able to synthesise it from histidine
by means of their contents of L-histidine decarboxylase. Histamine kinetic
parameters determined in patients with melanoma’s had t1/2 12.7 min and Vd 66.0 l.
The small t1/2, seems to implicate a rapid histamine metabolisation.
Conclusion
Histamine is absorbed through the respiratory system. However, due to the rapid
histamine metabolisation it is not expected that the histamine dose in cigarette will be
high enough to affect the plasma histamine level.
TOXICOLOGY
Acute toxicity
Human
Injection of histamine can produce a wide range of adverse effects that includes
headache, flushing of the skin, general vasodilatation with a fall in blood pressure,
tachycardia, bronchial constriction and dyspnoea, visual disturbances, vomiting,
diarrhoea, and other gastrointestinal effects. These reactions may be serious and
excessive dosage can produce collapse and shock, and may be fatal. Reactions may
occur at the injection site (14).
In a study a case of occupational histamine poisoning by spoiled fish flour via
inhalation, skin and eye contact was described. Twenty harbour workers handled
shipments of fish flour transported in black or blue bags. Ten workers handling blue
bags developed allergy-like skin, eye, gastrointestinal, respiratory and cardiac
symptoms within 30 min. Workers handling black bags were symptom-free, except
for minimal eye irritation. The histamine content was 10-fold higher in samples from
the blue than from the black bags (510 mg/100 g flour compared with 50 mg/100 g
flour, respectively) (40). It is often stated that ingestion of foods rich in histamine can
result in absorption of sufficient histamine to provoke signs and symptoms
reminiscent of an allergic reaction. Histamine ingestion in excess of 36 to 250 mg
may result in a clinical response, which includes abdominal complaints, feelings of
warmth, flushing and headache. (41).
Several foods contain histamine at levels potentially toxic for man; amongst the most
frequently incriminated products is fish, especially the scombroid species (tuna,
mackerel), which plays a pre-eminent role in the etiology of the so called
scombrotoxic fish poisoning. This syndrome begins from a few minutes to two hours