Sub-acute exposure to anti-cholinesterase organophosphorous compounds induces, in humans, cognitive and emotional deficits which include depression, anxiety, emotional lability, and schizophrenic-like symptoms. Neuroleptic drugs used to treat similar clinical conditions bind to serotonergic (S2) and dopaminergic (D2) receptors, suggesting that these sites are involved in the psychiatric consequences of organophosphate exposure. Rats were given saline or soman (50 micrograms/kg, SC) on a sub-acute regimen (three times weekly for four weeks) and killed 1 hr, 1 day or 3 days after the final injection. Response of regional neuroleptic receptors to soman intoxication was assessed using 3H-spiperone as ligand. Initial high affinity binding experiments using mianserine, haloperidol, or both to identify specific cortical binding revealed that mianserine displaceable binding sites showed the greatest down-regulation in response to soman. Subsequent kinetic analyses of mianserine displaceable 3H-spiperone binding indicated a dramatic decrease in the number of hippocampal binding sites and a decrease in the affinity of cortical binding sites. These S2 sites, considered to be involved with neural excitation, have the ability to self-regulate and appear to be involved in the expression of soman neurotoxicity.