We hypothesized that charge-charge interactions may be important for the binding of the human cholecystokinin type 1 (CCK(1)) receptor-specific non-peptide full agonist SR 146131, (2-[4-(4-chloro-2, 5-dimethoxyphenyl)-5-(2-cyclohexyl-ethyl)-thiazol-2-ylcarbamoyl ]-5, 7-dimethyl-indol-1-yl-1-acetic acid), the competitive antagonist SR 27897, (1-[2-(4-(2-chlorophenyl)thiazol-2-yl) aminocarbonyl indoyl] acetic acid) and the natural octapeptide CCK-8S to the CCK(1) receptor. Alanine replacement studies of positively charged residues in the extracellular domains of the receptor showed that only the R336A mutation affected SR 146131 potency of mutated receptors transiently expressed in monkey kidney epithelial COS-7 cells. Two residues, Lys(115) and Lys(187), were implicated in SR 27897 binding. Only the replacement of Lys(115), Arg(197) and Arg(336) significantly affected CCK-8S binding or activity. These results clearly indicated the importance of certain charged residues, but not others, in SR 146131, SR 27897 and CCK-8S binding. Furthermore, although these molecules probably occupy different binding sites on the CCK(1) receptor, we show that a small non-peptide agonist, SR 146131, can stimulate the dual signaling pathways mediated by the CCK(1) receptor.