Rat antral mucosal fragments were maintained in short-term culture to examine the relative potencies and receptor specificity of the cholinergic agonist, carbachol, and adrenergic agents, norepinephrine, isoproterenol, clonidine and phenylephrine in stimulating gastrin release. Results of these studies indicate that norepinephrine and carbachol evoke pharmacologically and temporally distinctive patterns of antral gastrin release. Dose-response experiments indicate that norepinephrine is approximately 10,000 times more potent on a molar basis than carbachol in stimulating antral gastrin release. Adrenergic (norepinephrine, isoproterenol) stimulation of antral gastrin release was prevented by propranolol, and cholinergic- (carbachol) mediated peptide release was blocked by both atropine and pirenzepine. Phenylephrine and clonidine did not alter basal gastrin release. The pattern of peptide release as a function of time was quite different for each agent: norepinephrine exerted its stimulatory effect acutely during the initial 30 minutes of incubation, while carbachol exhibited a sustained stimulatory action throughout the 2-hour culture period. In conclusion, data from these studies suggests that there are marked differences between norepinephrine and carbachol in their pharmacological potency and time-dependent activation of the G cell.