X-ray diffraction and ab initio MO theoretical calculations were used in order to investigate the structural and electronic properties of sarmazenil, a weak inverse agonist at the omega modulatory sites (benzodiazepine receptors). This compound was compared to bretazenil, a partial agonist, and to the antagonist flumazenil on the basis of structural and electronic data. The conformational and theoretical properties (interatomic pi overlap populations, molecular electrostatic potential (MEP), the topology of frontier orbitals, and proton affinity) of these three imidazobenzodiazepinones were determined in order to analyse the stereoelectronic properties in relation with their distinct intrinsic efficacies at the omega modulatory sites.