Substance P at micromolar concentrations enhances the uptake of [14C]guanidinium in neuroblastoma X glioma hybrid cells, an effect which most likely indicates activation of Na+ permeability. The substance P receptor was characterized pharmacologically. Analogues of substance P with D-amino acids e.g. spantide, and substance P-methyl ester were similarly active. Substance P (free acid), fragments of the substance P precursor, and substance P-(1-9) displayed no activity. This indicates the importance of the hydrophobic C-terminal for stimulation of the hybrid cells. The potency was reduced with decreasing length the of C-terminal fragments. However, the substance P antagonists [D-Pro4,D-Trp7,9,Nle11]substance P-(4-11) and [D-Pro4,D-Trp7,9,10]substance P-(4-11) showed substantially greater activity than substance P-(4-11). Substance P-(6-11) (i.e. H-Arg-DTrp-MePhe-DTrp-Leu-Met-NH2) behaved as a mixed agonist-antagonist. At concentrations higher than 10 microM, it inhibited the stimulation exerted by substance P. No other peptides of the tachykinin family (neurokinins A and B, physalaemin, eledoisin, kassinin) nor the synthetic analogues with specificity for certain receptor subtypes ([pGlu6,Pro9]substance P-(6-11), DiMe-C7, i.e. [pGlu5,MePhe8,Sar9]substance P-(5-11) and senktide, i.e. N-succinyl-[Asp6,MePhe8]substance P-(6-11) had any effect on guanidinium uptake in the hybrid cells. Hence, the substance P site with low affinity on the hybrid cells does not fit into the usual classification of tachykinin receptors but resembles the site that modulates nicotinic acetylcholine receptors on chromaffin cells.