8-Hydroxydeoxyguanosine (8-OH-dG) was detected in DNA isolated from HeLa cells after the cells in tissue culture had been irradiated with X-rays and from the liver of mice after the whole animals had been irradiated with gamma-rays. The amounts of 8-OH-dG in DNA after in vivo irradiation were three orders of magnitude lower than those after in vitro irradiation (0.008-0.032 8-OH-dG residue/10(5) dG/krad). The 8-OH-dG produced in liver DNA by irradiation of mice decreased with time, suggesting the presence of a repair enzyme(s) acting on 8-OH-dG in mouse liver. Treatment of Salmonella typhimurium cells with hydrogen peroxide also caused increase in the 8-OH-dG content. These results indicate that 8-OH-dG is formed in vivo in cellular DNA on treatment with various oxygen radical-producing agents and that it is repairable.