Mucosal Mast Cell Distribution in the Gastrointestinal Tract of Children: A Preliminary Study for Establishing Reference Values

Objectives: The physiological number and distribution of mast cells (MCs) in the pediatric gastrointestinal (GI) tract is not well defined and reference values of normality are missing. To define a physiological and disease defining cut-off, a systematic histological exploration of MC distribution from the esophagus to the rectum in healthy as well as in patients with gastrointestinal food allergies (GFA) was performed. Methods: Nine pediatric subjects that exhibited unremarkable histopathological evaluations or underwent endoscopy for surveillance reasons after a previous polypectomy of single colonic juvenile polyps served as reference cohort. In all of these subjects, a chronic inflammatory disease (eg, inflammatory bowel disease, celiac disease) or allergy was excluded. In addition, a group of 15 patients with gastrointestinal complaints suspected to be caused by a GFA were investigated. Immunohistochemistry was performed from all biopsies using CD117 (c-Kit) as a reliable marker to identify MCs in the lamina propria. Results: There were distinct differences of MC counts in all parts of the pediatric GI tract. The highest counts of MCs in both symptomatic patients and control cohort, were found in the duodenum, terminal ileum, cecum and ascending colon. The lowest counts were found in the esophagus. Significant disparities between GFA and healthy subjects were found in the gastric corpus (22.1 +/- 4.0/ high power field [HPF] vs 32.0 +/- 10.1/HPF; P = 0.034) and ascending colon (44.8 +/- 10.4/HPF vs 60.4 +/- 24.3/HPF; P = 0.047). Conclusions: Mucosal MC counts in the pediatric GI tract are higher than previously reported, with a considerable overlap between healthy and GFA patients. These results provide detailed information on distribution and numbers of MCs in pediatric allergic patients while allowing estimates of physiological values in childhood for the first time. With regard to diagnostic procedures in GFA further laboratory parameters have to be integrated.

Automated summary

This study investigated the number and distribution of mast cells (MCs) in the pediatric gastrointestinal (GI) tract, and found significant differences in MC counts in different parts of the GI tract. The counts of MCs in the pediatric GI tract are higher than previously reported, with an overlap between healthy individuals and those with gastrointestinal food allergies (GFA). These results provide detailed information on MC distribution and numbers in pediatric allergic patients, and allow for the estimation of physiological values in childhood for the first time.