New ELISA Kit Measures Histamine in Diverse Biological Specimens

A newly released ELISA kit measures histamine or N-methyl histamine in a wide variety of biological specimens.

Histamine is an organic nitrogen compound involved in local immune responses as well as regulating physiological function in the gut and acting as a neurotransmitter. Histamine triggers the inflammatory response. As part of an immune response to foreign pathogens, histamine is produced by basophils and by mast cells found in nearby connective tissues. Histamine increases the permeability of the capillaries to white blood cells and some proteins, to allow them to engage pathogens in the infected tissues. Increased vascular permeability in the nasal passages causes fluid to escape from capillaries into the tissues, which leads to the classic symptoms of an allergic reaction: a runny nose and watery eyes. Allergens can bind to IgE-loaded mast cells in the nasal cavity's mucous membranes. This can lead to three clinical responses: sneezing due to histamine-associated sensory neural stimulation, hyper-secretion from glandular tissue nasal congestion due to vascular engorgement associated with vasodilation, and increased capillary permeability. The half-life of histamine in a biological system is about four minutes before its conversion to the longer lived N-methyl histamine, which is present in the urine.

A new kit—for research use only—for the determination of histamine and N-methyl histamine has been released by Enzo Life Sciences (Farmingdale, NY, USA). The Histamine ELISA kit, which can analyze up to 40 samples in duplicate in less than two hours, measures as little as 0.03 nanograms per milliliter of histamine in serum, plasma, urine, or tissue culture medium. The Histamine ELISA kit contains all materials required to perform the assay. It is supplied with an easy-to-follow protocol, pre-coated break-a-part microtiter plate, and liquid color-coded reagents that save time and reduce errors.

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