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Agonist potency at some neurotransmitter receptors has been shown to be regulated by voltage, a mechanism which has been suggested to play a crucial role in the regulation of neurotransmitter release by inhibitory autoreceptors. Likewise, receptor deactivation rates upon agonist removal have been implicated in autoreceptor function. Using G protein-coupled potassium (GIRK) channel activation in Xenopus oocytes as readout of receptor activity, we have investigated the voltage sensitivities and signaling kinetics of the hH₃⁴⁴⁵ and hH₃³⁶⁵ isoforms of the human histamine H₃ receptor, which functions as an inhibitory auto- and heteroreceptor in the nervous system. We have also investigated both the human and the mouse homologues of the related histamine H₄ receptor, which is expressed mainly on hematopoietic cells. We found that the hH₃⁴⁴⁵ receptor is the most sensitive to voltage, whereas the hH₃³⁶⁵ …