Intraperitoneal administration of 0.75 mg/kg of compound 48/80 (a mast cell degranulator) once daily for four days induced extensive gastric lesions in rats. Oral administration of tripelennamine (histamine H1-receptor antagonist) and cimetidine (histamine H2-receptor antagonist) twice daily for four days had little or no effect on the lesion formation. Oral administration of methysergide and cyproheptadine (serotonin antagonists) and FPL-52694 (a mast cell stabilizer) potently inhibited the compound 48/80-induced lesions. Intraperitoneal administration of histamine plus serotonin, or serotonin alone, induced gastric lesions which resembled those induced by compound 48/80. These lesions were potently inhibited by methysergide and cyproheptadine, but not by tripelennamine, cimetidine, and FPL-52694. Single or repeated administration of compound 48/80 significantly increased serum histamine and serotonin levels. After a single administration of compound 48/80, the increased histamine levels rapidly returned to normal levels, but serotonin levels remained high for 7 hr. Histamine and serotonin levels in the gastric mucosa were transiently increased after a single administration of compound 48/80, but remained normal after repeated administration. Single or repeated administration of compound 48/80 had little effect on arterial blood pressure. The compound 48/80-induced gastric lesions appear to be caused primarily by the release of serotonin, but not histamine, from extragastric sources.