Histamine H3 receptor activation inhibits dopamine D1 receptor-induced cAMP accumulation in rat striatal slices

In striatal membranes bearing significant levels of histamine H3 receptors (72 +/- 14 fmol/mg protein), the H3 agonist immepip (1 microM) increased [35S]GTPgammaS binding to 119 +/- 2% of basal, an effect prevented by the H3 antagonist clobenpropit and by pre-treatment with pertussis toxin. In slices labelled with [3H]adenine and in the presence of 1 mM isobutylmethylxantine (IBMX), the selective dopamine D1-like (D1/D5) receptor agonist SKF-81297 stimulated cyclic [3H]AMP ([3H]cAMP) accumulation (maximal stimulation 205 +/- 24% of basal, EC50 113 +/- 12 nM), an effect fully blocked by the D1/D5 antagonist SCH-23390. The accumulation of [3H]cAMP induced by 1 microM SKF-81297 was inhibited in a concentration-dependent manner by the selective H3 receptor agonist immepip (maximal inhibition 60+/-5%, IC50 13 +/- 5 nM). The inhibitory action of 100 nM immepip was reversed in a concentration-dependent manner by the H3 antagonist thioperamide (EC50 13 +/- 3 nM, Ki 1.4 +/- 0.3 nM). Forskolin-induced [3H]cAMP accumulation (726 +/- 57% of basal) was also reduced by H3 receptor activation, although to a lesser extent (19.1 +/- 3.2% inhibition), an action not affected by the absence of either IBMX or Ca2+ ions in the incubation medium. Neither the density of [3H]SCH-23390 binding sites (D1 receptors) nor the inhibition by SKF-81297 were affected by 1 microM immepip, ruling out a direct interaction between D1 and H3 receptors. These results indicate that through H3 receptors coupled to Galphai/o proteins, histamine modulates cAMP formation in striatal neurones that possess D1 receptors, most probably GABAergic striato-nigral neurones.