Twenty four hour urine samples of male control and streptozotocin-diabetic Wistar rats were analysed for a series of commonly known kidney-specific enzymes, for electrolytes, creatinine, glucose, total protein and urine volume. The examination was done during two periods of 5 days between the 25th and 30th and the 32nd and 36th day after streptozotocin application. In the first period the animals had free access to food and water, whereas in the second period on days 32, 34 and 36 food was withdrawn. In the first observation period the diabetic rats showed increased excretion rates of 15 measured urinary parameters, while alanine aminopeptidase (EC 3.4.1.2) and gamma-glutamyltransferase (EC 2.3.2.2) activities were lowered and inorganic phosphate was unchanged. The removal of food resulted in decreased excretion values for alanine aminopeptidase, gamma-glutamyltransferase and total protein as compared with fasted nondiabetic animals. The activities of N-acetyl-beta-D-glucosaminidase (EC 3.2.1.30), acid phosphatase (EC 3.1.3.2), lactate dehydrogenase (EC 1.1.1.27), pyruvate kinase (EC 2.7.1.40), C1-fructose 1.6-diphosphatase (EC 3.1.3.11) and the excretion values for sodium, calcium, magnesium, chloride and glucose were higher than in fasted nondiabetic rats. beta-Glucosidase (EC 3.2.1.21), potassium, inorganic phosphate, creatinine, and urine volume showed no differences between fasted diabetic and fasted control animals. The enzymes in the renal cortex at the end of the experiment showed only decreased activity of alanine aminopeptidase in diabetic rats. Lactate dehydrogenase, pyruvate kinase, beta-glucosidase, C1-fructose 1.6-diphosphatase and glucose 6-phosphatase (EC 3.1.3.9) were increased and gamma-glutamyltransferase, N-acetyl-beta-D-glucosaminidase, acid phosphatase and glucose 6-phosphate dehydrogenase (EC 1.1.1.49) showed no change.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)