Histamine in the kidneys: what is its role in renal pathophysiology?

Starting from the histamine role in the renal haemodynamic, over time, spare evidence suggested a wider range of action on renal function and renewed the interest on the pathophysiological role of histamine in the kidney. This review intends to provide an up-to-date focus on this topic. According to the intrarenal production of histamine and the renal presence of its receptors, the histaminergic machinery appears to be well suited. The distribution of histamine receptors supports their differential effects but do not exclude the redundancy of H1 and H2 receptors in renal haemodynamics, the complementary role of H1 and H4 receptors in renal filtration and reabsorption, and the dichotomy between local and neuronal H1 and H3 receptors. Experimental models of renal diseases rise the hypothesis of new therapeutic approaches histamine based. A complete elucidation of the influence of the renal regulation by histamine is still ongoing.