Lipopolysaccharide (LPS), an endotoxin from the wall of Escherichia coli, produces a general behavioral inhibition and affects several aspects of fluid-electrolyte balance. LPS inhibits thirst; however, it is not clear if it also inhibits sodium appetite. The present results show that LPS (0.3-2.5 mg/kg body wt) injected intraperitoneally produces a dose-dependent reduction of sodium appetite expressed as 0.3 M NaCl intake induced by sodium depletion (furosemide plus removal of ambient sodium for 24 h). The high doses of LPS (1.2-2.5 mg/kg) also produced transient hypothermia at the beginning of the sodium appetite test; however, no dose produced hyperthermia. LPS also increased the stomach liquid content (an index of gastric emptying) after a load of 0.3 M NaCl given intragastrically by gavage to sodium-depleted rats. The α(2)-adrenoceptor antagonist yohimbine (5 mg/kg ip) abolished the effect of LPS on 0.3 M NaCl intake, without changing the effect of LPS on gastric emptying. Injection of RX-821002 (160 nmol), another α(2)-adrenoceptor antagonist, in the lateral cerebral ventricle (LV) also reversed the inhibition of sodium appetite produced by LPS. Yohimbine intraperitoneally or RX-821002 in the LV alone had no effect on sodium intake. Although yohimbine plus LPS produced a slight hypotension, RX-821002 plus LPS produced no change in arterial pressure, suggesting that the blockade of the effects of LPS on sodium intake by the α(2)-adrenoceptor antagonists is independent from changes in arterial pressure. The results suggest an inhibitory role for LPS in sodium appetite that is mediated by central α(2)-adrenoceptors.