Effects of pertussis toxin (PT) treatment on atrial natriuretic peptide (ANP)-mediated inhibition of adenylate cyclase and amylase release were investigated in rat parotid gland. Adenylate cyclase activity stimulated by GTP gamma S in PT-treated membranes was much larger than that in normal membranes. ANP dose-dependently inhibited adenylate cyclase stimulated by GTP gamma S in control rat parotid membranes, however in membranes prepared from PT-injected (in vivo) rat parotid gland, ANP did not inhibit adenylate cyclase. ANP(10(-7)M) inhibited cAMP accumulation stimulated by forskolin (10(-6)M) in control rat parotid acinar cells by about 34%, however, in PT-treated cells, the inhibitory effect of ANP was attenuated completely. In control cells, amylase release stimulated by isoproterenol (10(-6)M) and forskolin (10(-6)M) were also depressed by ANP (10(-7)M) by 27 and 30%, respectively. The inhibitory response of ANP on amylase release was completely attenuated by PT-treatment. Gi was detected as a ADP-ribosylated 41-KDa protein by incubation of parotid membranes with PT and [alpha-P-32]NAD. In rat parotid gland, these results suggested that ANP mediates adenylate cyclase/cAMP system and consequently reduces amylase release through ANP-C receptor coupled to Gi.