The metabolic fate of the lung carcinogen N-nitrosobis(2-hydroxypropyl)amine (ND2HPA) in male Wistar rats was studied. The blood level after a single intraperitoneal (i.p.) injection of [1-14C]-ND2HPA at a dose of 3 g/kg body weight reached a maximum within 1 h. Most of the administered 14C was eliminated via the urine; 90.8% of the 14C was excreted in urine within 24 h, 5.5% in faeces, and 3.2% in expired air. About 11% of the 14C was detected in bile collected over 24 h. A relatively high concentration of 14C was found in the blood and target organs, such as the lung, liver, thyroid gland and kidney 1 h after treatment. Analysis by high-pressure liquid chromatography showed that the 14C in the blood and urine was mostly accounted for by unchanged ND2HPA, together with smaller amounts of N-nitroso-(2-hydroxypropyl)(2-oxopropyl)amine (N2HP2OPA). ND2HPA and N2HP2OPA were also detected in the lung and liver of rats 30 min to 12 h after the administration and were present in higher concentrations in the blood and lung than in the liver and pancreas. Besides ND2HPA and N2HP2OPA. N-nitrosomethyl(2-hydroxypropyl)amine (NM2HPA) was also found in urine collected over 6 h. ND2HPA, N2HP2OPA and NM2HPA showed mutagenicity in the Salmonella assay system with metabolic activation by a 9000 X g supernatant of rat liver, and N2HP2OPA was also mutagenic in the presence of a rat lung preparation. These data suggest that N2HP2OPA and NM2HPA might be important intermediates in the metabolic activation of ND2HPA to its ultimate carcinogenic form in rats.