Effects of staphylococcal enterotoxin B on rodent mast cells.

Staphylococcal enterotoxin B (SEB) was tested in rodent mast cell cultures for the release of serotonin. Both rat RBL-2H3 mast cells and murine peritoneal cells released serotonin after SEB stimulation in culture. Release of serotonin in RBL-2H3 cells depended on the concentration of SEB; an appreciable release was seen at 50 micrograms/ml. The release of serotonin was not due to cell death. Serotonin release could be enhanced by bradykinin but not by vasoactive intestinal peptide, substance P, lipopolysaccharide from Salmonella typhimurium, the calcium ionophore A23187, acetylcholine, adenosine, 5-hydroxyeicosatetraenoic acid, indomethacin, or phorbol myristate acetate. SEB bound directly to the membrane of RBL-2H3 mast cells, and the SEB-binding site, the presumptive receptor, appeared to be a protein. The SEB receptor could not be capped under membrane-capping conditions, and serotonin release could not be enhanced by attempts to cross-link the receptor. These results suggest that mast cells may be an important cell type involved in SEB toxicosis and that release of serotonin may be enhanced by activation of the kinin-kallikrein system.