The cdc40 mutation has been previously shown to be a heat-sensitive cell-division-cycle mutation. At the restrictive temperature, cdc40 cells arrest at the end of DNA replication, but retain sensitivity to hydroxyurea (Kassir and Simchen 1978). The mutation has also been shown to affect commitment to meiotic recombination and its realization. Here we show that mutant cells are extremely sensitive to Methyl-Methane Sulfonate (MMS) when the treatment is carried out at restrictive temperature. Incubation at 37 degrees C prior to, or after MMS treatment at 23 degrees C, does not result in lower survival. It is concluded that the CDC40 gene product has a role in DNA repair, possibly holding together or protecting the DNA during the early stages of repair. The CDC40 gene was cloned on a 2.65 kb DNA fragment. A 2 mu plasmid carrying the gene was integrated and mapped to chromosome IV, between trp4 and ade8, by the method of marker loss. Conventional tetrad analysis has shown cdc40 to map 1.7 cM from trp4.