Signal transduction: Mechanisms in basophils

In an effort to develop new therapies for blunting the allergic reaction, investigators have attempted to understand the process by which the aggregation of cell surface IgE and its receptor is translated into the secretion of mediators from basophils and mast cells. The number of candidate reactions and pathways involved in this transmembrane signaling is increasing yearly and despite an enormous wealth of information about the process, it is not yet clear what some of the more obvious candidate second messengers do or how the various pathways fit together.