Histamine H4 Receptor Antagonists: A New Approach for Tinnitus Treatment?

Tinnitus, a disorder with disruptive sound perception in the head without an external source, affects around 15 % of the worldwide adult population. Since there is no approved drug for the treatment for this symptom, novel strategies need to be developed to provide relief for the patient. A patent from the small French start-up company Sensorion suggests the use of histamine H4 receptor (H4R) inhibitors as potential treatment. Since histamine and its receptor subtypes are strongly involved in neuronal and inflammatory processes in vestibular areas, targeting the H4R could be a novel way to gain a treatment for tinnitus. Although mRNA and protein levels of H4R have been demonstrated on isolated spiral ganglion neurons from mice, the methods of receptor detection as well as the species relevance of the data are under discussion and require considerable further verification, especially on a disease with a high medical need like tinnitus.