Twenty-one median preoptic nucleus (MnPO) neurons in normotensive Wistar-Kyoto rats (WKY) and 18 MnPO neurons in spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR) were antidromically activated by electrical stimulation of the hypothalamic paraventricular nucleus (PVN) under urethane anesthesia. No significant differences in the latency, conduction velocity, or threshold of antidromic activation were observed between WKY and SHR. The spontaneous discharge rate was significantly higher in SHR than in WKY. The activity of these identified MnPO units was examined for response to intracarotid injections of isotonic (0.15 M NaCl solution, 0.05 ml) or hypertonic (0.3 M NaCl solution, 0.05 ml) saline. All the units did not change their activity to the injections of isotonic saline. Of these units, 14 units in WKY and 12 units in SHR displayed and 3 units in WKY and 4 units in SHR exhibited a reduction in neuronal activity following the injections of hypertonic saline, while the remaining 4 units in WKY and 2 units in SHR were unresponsive. The duration and frequency of excitatory response, but not the inhibitory response, caused by the osmotic stimulation was much greater in SHR than in WKY. These results show that MnPO neurons projecting to the PVN may carry the information from osmosensitive elements and that there is a difference between WKY and SHR in the responsivity of these MnPO neurons to the osmotic stimulation.