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Histamine is released in inflammatory reactions and exerts an immunoregulatory function on cells present in the microenvironment. In this study, we compared the effect of histamine on degranulation of mast cells derived from animals bearing a parasitic infection with those from uninfected animals. Peritoneal mast cells (PMC) were obtained 24 days after infection of Wistar rats with Toxocara canis. The degree of degranulation was assessed either morphologically or by measuring the release of β‐hexosaminidase and TNF‐α. Non‐purified PMC or mast cells immunomagnetically purified with mAb AA4 were used. An increase in degranulation of non‐purified mast cells from infected animals was observed after incubation with histamine in vitro or when histamine was injected into the peritoneal cavity. When a purified mast cell population was used, this effect was no longer observed. Supernatants from spleen cells …