Phencyclidine (PCP) markedly stimulates the pituitary-adrenal axis in the rat, inducing the release of adrenocorticotropin (ACTH) and corticosterone. However, the site or sites where PCP produces these effects is not known. This study sequentially examined the effects of PCP on the different components of the central nervous system-pituitary-adrenal axis. PCP did not produce corticosterone release in dispersed adrenal cells in vitro, nor did it stimulate the release of corticosterone in hypophysectomized rats, showing that PCP-induced corticosterone release in intact animals is secondary to the release of ACTH from the pituitary. PCP failed to alter either the basal or the corticotropin releasing factor-induced release of ACTH from superfused pituitaries in vitro, indicating that PCP does not act directly at the level of the pituitary. PCP increased plasma levels of ACTH in adrenalectomized rats, demonstrating that PCP does not stimulate the release of ACTH only by blocking glucocorticoid negative feedback mechanisms. PCP stimulated the release of both ACTH and corticosterone when given by injection directly into brain via the lateral cerebral ventricles. These results indicate that PCP activates the pituitary-adrenal axis by acting at a site or sites within the central nervous system, leading to the subsequent release of ACTH from the pituitary.