It has previously been demonstrated that the polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH), benzo(a)pyrene (B[a]P), suppresses the terminal step in B-cell differentiation, resulting in a decrease in antibody production to T-dependent and B-2 T-independent antigens. The purpose of this study was to ascertain if this effect was common to carcinogenic PAHs or specific for B[a]P. The PAH 7,12-dimethylbenz[a]anthracene (DMBA) was administered to B6C3F1 female mice by ten sc injections of 0.5, 5, or 10 micrograms/g over a 2-week period (i.e., total dose of 5, 50, and 100 micrograms/g). Immune function and host resistance assays were performed 3 to 5 days following the last injection. The 10 micrograms/g dosage resulted in a marked decrease in spleen weights and spleen and bone marrow cellularity, while thymus and body weights were not significantly altered. The ability to generate B-lymphocyte colonies in vitro from spleen precursor cells was also suppressed at the 10 micrograms/g dose. Exposure to DMBA at 5 micrograms/g or greater resulted in a reduction of up to 97% in the number of IgM plaque-forming cells in response to the T-dependent antigen sheep red blood cells (SRBC). The IgG response to SRBC was similarly depressed. The IgM response to the hapten-conjugated T-independent antigens trinitrophenyl-lipopolysaccharide (TNP-LPS) (specific for B-1 cells) and trinitrophenyl (TNP)-Ficoll (specific for B-2 cells) was also depressed (88 and 97%, respectively) at 10 micrograms/g. DMBA exposure resulted in an increased susceptibility to challenge with the PYB6 transplantable sarcoma and the bacterium Listeria monocytogenes, in contrast to B[a]P exposure, which had no effect on host resistance assays. Thus, DMBA, a more potent carcinogen than B[a]P, produces a more extensive B-cell suppression than B[a]P as well as alters host resistance to tumor and bacterial challenge.