Mast cells in clinical dermatology.

Recent advances in cutaneous mast cell biology are briefly reviewed with special reference to our own studies on cultured human mast cells. Of note are the heterogeneity of mastocytosis, the important participation of mast cells in allergic inflammation by releasing cytokines and the inhibitory effect of histamine release from mast cells by phototherapy. It is also stressed that mast cells play a major role in tissue remodelling. These novel findings suggest that mast cells can no longer be regarded simply as cells that initiate immediate allergic reactions, but that they are responsible for various chronic inflammatory or immunological events through cytokine-dependent leucocyte recruitment. The regulation of mast cell activation should be a critical issue and, thus, a promising therapeutic approach in clinical dermatology.