The eosinophil and cutaneous edema.

Although eosinophils are readily identified in skin tissue, their role in cutaneous disease has been obscure. Recent studies have elucidated the structure, content, and several activities of the eosinophil. The eosinophil is a potent parasite-killer cell and probably mediates damage to respiratory epithelium in bronchial asthma. We review information showing an association between cutaneous edema and eosinophil degranulation in tissue. These studies show that eosinophils release and deposit toxic granule proteins extensively in the skin despite the existence of few intact eosinophils in tissue. The evidence suggests that the eosinophil functions not only as a parasite-killer cell but also as a proinflammatory cell that may be pathophysiologically related to the development of cutaneous edema.