title: The disposition of (R)-alpha-methylhistamine, a histamine H3-receptor agonist, in rats.
abstract: Using a modified HPLC method with a fluorescence spectrophotometer and a weak cation exchanger, it was possible to separate (R)-alpha-methylhistamine (alpha-methylhistamine) from histamine in plasma and various tissues. The assay was used to study the disposition and pharmacokinetic analysis of alpha-methylhistamine after a bolus intravenous administration to rats. After rapid intravenous administration (12.6 mg kg-1), the plasma concentration declined biexponentially with a half-life of 1.3 min in the elimination phase. The area under the plasma concentration-time curve and total body clearance were 130 micrograms min mL-1 and 97 mL min-1 kg-1, respectively. After administration, alpha-methylhistamine was immediately transferred to various tissues. The concentration was high in the kidney, lung, and liver (kidney > lung > liver), but low in the brain. The tissue-to-plasma concentration ratios in peripheral tissues were greater than 1, suggesting that the transfer of alpha-methylhistamine to peripheral tissues was due to a specialized transport mechanism or possibly to tissue binding. However, the finding that the tissue/plasma ratio in the brain was lower than unity suggests that the transport system in this tissue depends on a concentration gradient, and that alpha-methylhistamine crosses the blood-brain barrier in rats with difficulty.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmaceutics I, Tohoku College of Pharmacy, Sendai, Japan.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Yamasaki
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Sakurai
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Hikichi
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Sakai
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Maeyama
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Watanabe
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001812:Blood-Brain Barrier; D002851:Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid / Q000379:methods; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D006632:Histamine / Q000097:blood; D017442:Histamine Agonists / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000493:pharmacokinetics*; D007275:Injections, Intravenous; D008297:Male; D008761:Methylhistamines / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000493:pharmacokinetics*; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar; D018100:Receptors, Histamine H3 / Q000187:drug effects*; D013050:Spectrometry, Fluorescence; D014018:Tissue Distribution
chemical_list: D017442:Histamine Agonists; D008761:Methylhistamines; D018100:Receptors, Histamine H3; C069357:alpha-methylhistamine; D006632:Histamine