Carthy · Frontiers in neuroscience 2021 · narrative review · n=?

Histamine, Neuroinflammation and Neurodevelopment: A Review.

Cited 125 times in the scientific literature.

Level 5 - mechanism / opinion, no new human data

Narrative review of preclinical mechanisms and clinical associations without systematic search methodology

PubMed 34335160 · doi:10.3389/fnins.2021.680214 · record verified 2026-08-28

What was done

This narrative review synthesized literature examining the roles of neuronal and non-neuronal (e.g., mast cell) histamine in neuroinflammation, corticostriatal circuit development, and neurodevelopmental conditions such as Tourette's syndrome and obsessive-compulsive disorder. The authors also examined preclinical and clinical evidence on the efficacy of histamine receptor modulators.

What was found

The abstract reports no quantitative metrics or effect sizes. It qualitatively describes associations between reduced histamine synthesis and altered corticostriatal development in Tourette's syndrome and obsessive-compulsive disorder, suggests histamine deficiency increases susceptibility to proinflammatory insults, and notes emerging in vitro and in vivo evidence that non-neuronal histamine influences microglial-mediated neuroinflammation.

Why it matters

The review connects neuroimmunology and neurodevelopment, proposing that early modulation of neuronal and non-neuronal histamine pathways could offer novel therapeutic targets for neurodevelopmental disorders.

Limits

The paper provides no primary experimental data or systematic search protocol. Most supporting evidence is derived from limited in vitro and animal models, and clinical translation of histamine receptor modulators remains early and descriptive.

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