Effect of subchronically administered GTS-21 [3-(2,4-dimethoxybenzylidene)-anabaseine dihydrochloride], a selective nicotinic agonist, on neuronal cell loss caused by nucleus basalis magnocellularis (nBM) lesion was studied in rats. After 2 weeks of bilateral nBM excitotoxic lesion, GTS-21 was orally administered once daily for 20 weeks. Neuronal cell loss was observed in layers II-III of the parietal cortex in the lesioned control rats. GTS-21 significantly attenuated the neuron loss in these layers. These results suggest that GTS-21 exhibits a protective action against the neuronal cell death in the parietal cortex and may have a beneficial effect on neurodegenerative disorders such as an Alzheimer-type disease.