In a search for structurally new alpha(1)-adrenoreceptor (alpha(1)-AR) antagonists, prazosin (1)-related compounds 2-11 were synthesized and their affinity profiles were assessed by functional experiments in isolated rat vas deferens (alpha(1A)), spleen (alpha(1B)), and aorta (alpha(1D)) and by binding assays in CHO cells expressing human cloned alpha(1)-AR subtypes. Transformation of the piperazinylquinazoline moiety of 1 into an aminomethyltetrahydroacridine system afforded compound 2, endowed with reduced affinity, in particular for the alpha(1A)-AR subtype. Then, to investigate the optimal features of the tricyclic moiety, the aliphatic ring of 2 was modified by synthesizing the lower and higher homologues 3 and 4. An analysis of the pharmacological profile, together with a molecular modeling study, indicated the tetrahydroacridine moiety as the most promising skeleton for alpha(1)-antagonism. Compounds 5-8, where the replacement of the furoyl group of 2 with a benzoyl moiety afforded the possibility to evaluate the effect of the substituent trifluoromethyl on receptor binding, resulted, except for 7, in a rather surprising selectivity toward alpha(1B)-AR, in particular vs the alpha(1A) subtype. Also the insertion of the 2,6-dimethoxyphenoxyethyl function of WB 4101 on the tetrahydroacridine skeleton of 2, and/or the replacement of the aromatic amino function with a hydroxy group, affording derivatives 9-11, resulted in alpha(1B)-AR selectivity also vs the alpha(1D) subtype. On the basis of these results, the tetrahydroacridine moiety emerged as a promising tool for the characterization of the alpha(1)-AR, owing to the receptor subtype selectivity achieved by an appropriate modification of the lateral substituents.