Polyclonal antibodies have been prepared against synthetic peptides of human angiotensin II type-1 (AT1) and type-2 (AT2) receptors. Synthetic peptides corresponded to amino acids 15-24 of AT1 receptor and amino acids 241-253 of AT2 receptor. Western blot analysis of membranes from cell homogenates of COS-7 cells transfected with expression plasmids for mouse AT1b receptor, human vascular smooth muscle cells, and rat peripheral tissue demonstrated a major band of MW 44,000 with AT1 receptor antibody. Cell homogenates of COS-7 cells transfected with expression plasmids for human AT2 receptor showed a band of MW 44,000 with AT2 receptor antibody. Tissue homogenate of rat adrenal medulla and human pheochromocytoma presented a major band of MW 52,000 and a minor band of MW 44,000 with AT2 receptor antibody. AT1 receptor expression was in the following order: rat aorta > > lung, kidney, spleen, adrenal cortex > adrenal medulla, heart. Expression of AT2 receptor was in the following order: rat adrenal medulla > cortex, kidney, heart. Three-day treatment with CS866, an AT1 receptor antagonist, and temocapril, an angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor, suppressed AT1 receptor expression in the rat adrenal cortex, but not in the heart or adrenal medulla. AT2 expression was not affected by treatment with these drugs. These results suggest that newly developed antibodies for AT1 and AT2 receptors are useful in elucidating the regulation of subtype-specific receptor expression, and that AT1 but not AT2 receptors in adrenal tissue are regulated by angiotensin II.