A histamine-activated chloride channel involved in neurotransmission at a photoreceptor synapse

COMPARED with the variety of neuromodulatory agents acting through second messenger systems, the number of fast neurotran-smitters which directly activate ion channels is limited. Thus, synaptic receptors that act as ligand-gated ion channels have been firmly established only for acetylcholine, glycine, GABA and glutamate, with the first three of these belonging to the same molecular superfamily1. Recently, however, a possible addition to this list has been suggested as a result of evidence implicating histamine as the neurotransmitter released by a variety of arthropod photoreceptors2–7. Neurotransmission at this synapse has been studied extensively, particularly in the fly8–12. The post-synaptic elements, large monopolar cells, respond to light with a rapid, chloride-mediated hyperpolarization8,13,14 that can be mimicked by the application of histamine3. In this report I document some basic properties of the histamine receptors present on large monopolar cells isolated from blowfly optic lobes. The receptor is a ligand-gated chloride channel showing properties consistent with its presumed role of mediating neurotransmission at the photoreceptor synapse.

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