A form of oxidative DNA damage, 8-hydroxydeoxyguanosine (8-OHdG), was comparatively determined for 48 h in the kidney and liver isolated from Sprague-Dawley rats i.p. treated with Adriamycin; potassium bromate (KBrO3), hydroquinone and vitamin A. HPLC-ECD analysis system showed that Adriamycin and KBrO3, renal carcinogens, induced higher levels of 8-OHdG in the target organ of kidney (12-13.8 residues/10(4) dG(deoxyguanosine)) compared to those in the liver (3.4-3.8 residues/10(4) dG) and showed highly persistent levels (8 residues, 10(4) dG) in the kidney. The data suggest that the organotropic persistence of 8-OHdG may provide a useful marker for identifying target organ systems in oxidative chemical carcinogenesis and screening free radical-generating carcinogens.