Histamine H3 receptor-mediated inhibition of excitatory synaptic transmission in the rat dentate gyrus in vivo.

We investigated the effects of histamine H3-receptor ligands on hippocampal synaptic transmission by using anesthetized rats in vivo. The medial perforant path was stimulated, and the population excitatory postsynaptic potential (pEPSP) and population spike were recorded from the granule cell layer of the dentate gyrus. Intracerebroventricular injection of the H3-receptor agonist (R)-alpha-methylhistamine decreased both the pEPSP and population spike, while H3-receptor antagonists, clobenpropit and thioperamide, increased both the pEPSP and population spike. These results suggest that the histaminergic system plays a role in inhibition of hippocampal synaptic excitation via the H3 receptor.