Subfornical organ: site of drinking elicitation by angiotensin II.

Angiotensin II applied directly to the subfornical organ in a dose as small as 0.1 nanogram elicited short-latency drinking behavior in water-sated rats. Lesions in the body of this structure blocked drinking induced by angiotensin II applied to the basal telencephalon (including preoptic area). These results call attention to the subfornical organ as an important central nervous structure involved in the conrol of drinking behavior.