The effect of dopamine D-1 and D-2 receptor stimulation on body temperature has been investigated in male mice. The selective D-2 receptor agonists, quinpirole and LY 163502, and the mixed D-1/D-2 agonist, apomorphine, induced a dose-dependent hypothermia, whereas the selective D-1 receptor agonists, SK&F 81297, SK&F 38393 and SK&F 75670, induced hyperthermia. The hyperthermic responses of these agents were of a similar magnitude although the relative efficacies determined in vitro with the adenylate cyclase assay were different. The peripherally acting D-1 agonist, fenoldopam, did not influence body temperature, indicating that the hyperthermia is mediated, centrally. Studies with combinations of quinpirole and SK&F 38393 showed that the effect of one of the substances could be counteracted by the other. Furthermore, antagonist studies showed that the hypothermia induced by quinpirole could be inhibited by the D-2-selective antagonist, YM 09151-2, and by the mixed D-1/D-2 antagonist, cis(Z)-flupentixol, but not by the D-1-selective antagonist, SCH 23390. Similar results were found for apomorphine-induced hypothermia. SK&F 38393-induced hyperthermia could be antagonized by all three antagonists. These results suggest that the two receptor subtypes act differentially on body temperature, and that they influence a common out-put system, but in opposite directions. These findings are opposite to those of behavioural studies, where a synergistic function of D-1 and D-2 receptors has been demonstrated in the regulation of motor function.