The expression of intrinsic resistance to cisplatin in two lung cancer cell lines, one derived from a small cell carcinoma (SW1271) and the other from an adenocarcinoma (A549), relative to a drug-sensitive small cell line SW900, was characterized by: (i) expression of cross-resistance to mitomycin C and cadmium chloride, but increased sensitivity to adriamycin and etoposide; (ii) significantly decreased cisplatin uptake; (iii) elevated levels of glutathione which could be reduced by buthionine L-sulfoximine resulting in significant sensitization of the cells to cisplatin; (iv) a lack of consistent modification of metallothionein content and expression of levels of glutathione S-transferase, glutathione reductase and glutathione peroxidase or of activities of DT-diaphorase or catalase; (v) significantly reduced total DNA-platination levels immediately following a 1 h cisplatin treatment with 10 micrograms/ml (33.3 microM); (vi) increased removal of Pt-GG and Pt-AG adducts by the A549 cells, consistent with increased repair capacity, but a lack of removal of these major adducts by the SW1271 cells indicative of tolerance of this drug-induced DNA damage. These data therefore provide evidence of differential formation, repair and tolerance of DNA damage following exposure of three human lung carcinoma cell lines to cisplatin.