[3H]Cytisine was evaluated as an in vivo ligand for the nicotinic cholinergic receptor (nAchR) in mouse brain. The tracer was injected intravenously, and radioactivity in brain regions was analyzed. Radioactivity peaked in the brain at 30 minutes. It was highest in the thalamus, intermediate in the superior colliculi, prefrontal cortex and hippocampus, and low in the cerebellum. Pretreatment with unlabeled cytisine inhibited binding in the thalamus, but not in the cerebellum. Binding was displaced by l-nicotine, but not by d-nicotine or dexetimide. The results suggest that cytisine, appropriately labeled with a positron emitting radionuclide, may be useful for study of nicotinic cholinergic receptors in humans by emission computed tomography.