The ultrastructural localization of nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate-diaphorase (NADPH-d), which has been considered to be a neuronal nitric oxide synthase (NOS), was explored in the vascular endothelial cells and perivascular nerves of the cerebral arteries in the rat. In order to detect NADPH-d activity, 2-(2'-benzothiazolyl)-5-styryl-3-4-(4'-phthalhydrazidyl) tetrazolium chloride was utilized as a substrate for NADPH-d histochemistry at the electron microscopic level. In vascular endothelial cells, NADPH-d positive deposits were observed on the nuclear envelope and the endoplasmic reticulum (smooth or rough surfaced). Positive deposits were seen on distinct membrane portions of the endoplasmic recticulum (ER) in the perivascular nerves (axons), but no positive materials were observed either in the cytoplasm of the endothelial cells or in the axoplasm of the perivascular nerves. It was concluded that NOS is located on the membranes of the ER and the nuclear envelope, and that NOS may play substantial roles in the regulation of the cerebral vessels.