A Langendorff guinea pig heart preparation served for the assay of agonist potency of a series of 26 2-aralkoxyadenosines at the A1 and A2 receptors of, respectively, the atrioventricular node (conduction block) and coronary arteries (vasodilation). All of the analogues are weak agonists at the A1 receptor, requiring concentrations greater than 9 microM to cause second degree heart block. At the A2 receptor 2-phenethoxyadenosine is the most potent of the 2-phenylalkyladenosines. The activity of ring-substituted (F, Cl, CH3, and OCH3) 2-phenethoxyadenosines increases ortho less than meta less than para. The EC50s of coronary vasoactivity of several para-substituted analogues are in the subnanomolar range. The most potent analogue, 2-[2-(4-methylphenyl)ethoxy]adenosine 19, has an EC50 for coronary vasodilation of 190 pM and an A1/A2 selectivity ratio of 44,000. Aryl groups such as thienyl, indoloyl, or naphthyl also support A2 agonist activity. Although 2-oxoadenosine is 3 times more vasoactive than 2-aminoadenosine, the activities of the phenyl derivatives are markedly different; 2-phenoxyadenosine is 23 times weaker than 2-(phenylamino)adenosine (CV-1808).