There are conflicting data in the literature as to whether cytotoxicity of the cytidine antimetabolite 5'-azacytidine (AZC) is a consequence of its incorporation into RNA, DNA, or both. Because apoptosis appears to be the predominant mode of tumor cell death after treatment with most antitumor drugs, and in the case of some drugs, the proclivity of the cell to undergo apoptosis varies depending on the cell cycle position, this study was aimed toward elucidating whether induction of apoptosis by AZC is cell cycle phase specific. Human promyelocytic leukemic HL-60 cells were treated with varying concentrations of AZC, and flow cytometric methods that identify apoptotic cels and provide information about the cell cycle distribution of the apoptotic and nonapoptotic cell populations were used. At 2-6 microM concentrations of AZC, the cells in the G1 phase preferentially underwent apoptosis, whereas the cells in G2-M were particularly resistant. Although incorporation of bromouridine into RNA was suppressed at that low AZC concentration, the rate of 5'-bromo-2-deoxyuridine incorporation into DNA was not significantly affected. At an AZC concentration of 8-40 microM, no cell cycle phase specificity in induction of apoptosis was apparent, but both the rate of 5'-bromo-2-deoxyuridine incorporation into DNA and bromouridine into RNA were reduced in proportion to drug concentration. The data suggest that the mechanism of cell killing by AZC may be different, depending on its concentration. Namely, whereas incorporation of AZC into RNA may play a predominant role in the induction of cytotoxicity of G1 cells at low drug concentrations, the perturbation of both RNA and DNA metabolism may be responsible for triggering cell death in the G1 and S phases, as is seen at higher concentrations of this antimetabolite.