Three main aspects involved in the chemical induction of anaphase-telophase aberrations in the first mitosis after treatment were analyzed: 1) the relationship between the frequency of anaphase-telophase aberrations and the time of fixation after treatment; 2) the dose-response relationships; and 3) the proliferative rate of cells exposed to chemicals which interact with DNA by different mechanisms. Experiments were carried out using Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells. The compounds examined were adriamycin (ADR) and mitomycin C (MMC). The frequency of cells with chromatin bridges or with lagging chromosomes as well as the mitotic index was determined in each experiment. The results obtained showed that 1) chromatin bridges and lagging chromosomes are apparently induced during the S period of the previous interphase; 2) the increase in the cytotoxicity index (inferred from the mitotic index) and the frequency of cells with chromatin bridges and lagging chromosomes were proportional to the treatment lapse and to the dose employed; and 3) the effect of ADR on cell growth differs from the effect of MMC. While ADR decreased the mitotic activity of cells in logarithmic growth phase, MMC induced mitotic delay. In accordance with these results, the occurrence of chromatin bridges in anaphase-telophase could be explained by the induction of chromosome stickiness and, to a lesser extent, by the induction of exchange-type aberrations. On the other hand, lagging chromosomes seem to be the result of chromatid or chromosome breaks because the lagging chromosomes observed were primarily, if not all, fragments and not whole chromosomes. Our evaluation of the anaphase-telophase test indicates that it is very sensitive method for the detection of chemical clastogens, but other factors, such as mitotic depression, must be taken into account to avoid false-negative results.