The pharmacological properties of the α-bungarotoxin sensitive α7 neuronal nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (nAChR) were studied upon reconstitutio in Xenopus oocytes. Channels formed by α7 are about 10-fold more sensitive to nicotine and cytisine than to ACh but are little, if at all, activated by the ganglionic agonist 1,1-dimethyl-4-phenylpiperazinium iodide (DMPP). Tubocurarine (TC) was found to act as a non-competitive inhibitor, whereas dihydro-β-erythroidine (DHβE) behaves as a pure competitive inhibitor whose blockade is fast and fully reversible. In addition, the α7 receptor displays a poor sensitivity to methonium salts. The pharmacological properties of the α7 channels are readily distinguishable from those of other identified neuronal nicotinic receptors.