1. Incubation with hydralazine was shown to induce degradative changes of calf thymus DNA spin-labeled with 3-(2-bromoacetamido)-2,2,5,5-tetramethyl-1-pyrrolidono-1-oxyl and 4-(2-bromoacetamido)-2,2,6,6-tetramethylpiperidino-1-oxyl detectable from electron spin resonance specta. 2. Hydralazine, especially in the presence of Fe2+ induced formation of thiobarbituric acid (TBA)-reactive DNA degradation products. 3. The formation of TBA-reactive products was prevented by catalase, EDTA and scavengers of .OH radicals and enhanced by superoxide dismutase which suggests that .OH radicals formed by the Fenton mechanism mediate the DNA damage by hydralazine-Fe2+.