The central nucleus of the amygdala (CeA) is known to be involved in the regulation of autonomic, neuroendocrine and behavioural responses in stress situations. The CeA contains large numbers of corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH) cell bodies. Neuroanatomical studies revealed that the majority of the CRH fibres from the CeA have direct connections with autonomic regulatory nuclei in the brainstem. In the present study, the effects of locally infused CRH (30 ng) into the CeA, in freely moving male Wistar rats under stress-free conditions, were examined. Heart rate, endocrine parameters and behavioural activity were repeatedly measured before, during and after local administration of CRH, pretreated with either artificial CSF or the CRH-receptor antagonist, alpha-helical CRH (alpha-hCRH). CRH infusion alone caused a long-lasting increase in heart rate without affecting plasma adrenaline and noradrenaline as indicators of sympathetic activity. This CRH-induced tachycardia was effectively blocked by pretreatment with a high dose (1 microgram) alpha-hCRH locally into the CeA, while the pretreatment with low dose (0.1 microgram) of the alpha-hCRH caused a minor blockade of the CRH-induced tachycardia. The results suggest that CRH mechanisms in the CeA regulate the autonomic changes probably only by affecting parasympathetic but not sympathetic output systems. Because CRH is given at the level of the cell body of the CRH neurons in the CeA, we suggest that the reduction of the parasympathetic output may be explained as an autoreceptor-mediated inhibition of CRH neurons from the CeA with parasympathetic-regulating brainstem nuclei.