The NK2.1 alloantigen, one of the few NK-specific markers in the mouse, identifies a subset rather than all splenic NK cells. On the basis of the cell surface expression of a variety of Ag of the lymphocytic and monocytic lineages, we establish that BALB/c NK2.1+ cells are heterogeneous and that their phenotype is quite similar to the one reported for NK1.1+ cells. A NK2.1- cell population of the same size and related phenotype was also identified in fresh NK-enriched cell suspensions. After stimulation with IL-2, the only phenotypic trait that distinguishes NK2.1+ and NK2.1- cell subsets is precisely the expression of the NK2.1 Ag. To investigate whether NK2.1+ and NK2.1- lymphokine-activated killer cells would also be identical in their cytotoxic activity, NK-enriched spleen cells were cultured for 5 days with IL-2, sorted afterward on the basis of NK2.1 expression, and compared for their capacity to lyse YAC-1 targets. NK2.1+ cells are significantly more lytic than NK2.1- cells, suggesting that the anti-NK2.1 mAb, used for cell sorting, could have triggered NK2.1+ cells and enhanced their lytic activity. In support to this hypothesis we show that 1) immobilized anti-NK2.1 mAb induces granule exocytosis by LAK cells, 2) soluble anti-NK2.1 mAb specifically inhibits NK and LAK cell-mediated lysis of 4LO3311 hybridoma cells secreting anti-NK2.1 mAb, and 3) binding of anti-NK2.1 mAb selectively enhances the lysis of NK-sensitive targets. Furthermore, the successful activation of NK2.1+ cells induced by anti-NK2.1 F(ab')2 or F(ab) mAb fragments indicates that the triggering mechanism is different from reverse antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity and does not require cross-linking of the NK2.1 molecule. Our results strongly suggest that the NK2.1 molecule is implicated in a post-binding NK cell signaling event, and point out the possible functional relevance of this NK-specific Ag in non-MHC-restricted cytotoxicity.