The histaminergic system in neuropsychiatric disorders

Abstract

Histamine does not only modulate the immune response and inflammation, but also acts as a neurotransmitter in the mammalian brain. The histaminergic system plays a significant role in the maintenance of wakefulness, appetite regulation, cognition and arousal, which are severely af-fected in neuropsychiatric disorders. In this review, we first briefly describe the distribution of his-taminergic neurons, histamine receptors and their intracellular pathways. Next, we comprehen-sively summarize recent experimental and clinical findings on the precise role of histaminergic system in neuropsychiatric disorders, including cell-type role and its circuit bases in narcolepsy, schiz-ophrenia, Alzheimer’s disease, Tourette’s syndrome and Parkinson’s disease. Finally, we provide some perspectives on future research to illustrate the curative role of the histaminergic system in neuropsychiatric disorders.