Fluoride-resistant strains of mutans streptococci have been found to be less cariogenic than their parent strains in the rat model system. Therefore, it is important to determine whether the use of fluorides in vivo will increase the fluoride resistance of mutans streptococci and thereby possibly decrease their cariogenic potential. We studied (1) the fluoride resistance of Streptococcus mutans C180-2 in rat dental plaque exposed to various fluoride treatments (experiment 1), (2) the cariogenic potential of the exposed plaque after transmission to other animals (experiment 2), and (3) whether the fluoride treatments favoured the establishment of in vitro induced fluoride-resistant S. mutans in competition with a fluoride-sensitive strain in rat dental plaque (experiment 3). In all experiments, specific pathogen-free Osborne-Mendel rats were used, and all animals received diet SSP 20/5, containing 20% (w/w) sucrose and 5% (w/w) glucose, and tap water ad libitum. In experiment 1, the rats were inoculated with S. mutans C180-2. For an experimental period of 44 days, the rats either received no F treatment or received NaF mixed in the diet and drinking water (20 or 60 ppm F) or were brushed 6 days per week with an aqueous NaF solution containing either 0.1% (w/v) or 1% (w/v) F, respectively. Bacteriological analyses at the end of the experiment revealed that none of the fluoride treatments had caused a detectable increase in the inherent fluoride resistance of S. mutans C180-2.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)