Potassium-induced release of tritiated histamine from rat brain tissue slices.

The release of exogenous histamine was studied by superfusing brain slices following incubation with the radiolabeled amine. Histamine was released in a calcium-dependent way by 40 mM potassium. This release was high in hypothalamus and striatum and low in hippocampus and cortex. Compound 48/80, a mast cell histamine releasing agent, also induced histamine release, but only from hypothalamic tissue slices. It is suggested that the potassium-induced release of accumulated exogenous histamine is mainly from glial cells.