Two erythroid markers, acetylcholinesterase and hemoglobin, can be reversibly induced in the K-562 cell line after sodium butyrate treatment. In the present paper we show that 1-beta-D-arabinofuranosylcytosine (ara-C), induces the coordinate, irreversible expression of these two erythroid markers. This induction occurs at an ara-C concentration (0.05 mM) that results in K-562 cytostasis and is accompanied by deep morphological changes of cells. The differentiated phenotype is independent of the K-562 cell clone used [K-562, K-562 (S), K-562 (S)P] and is associated with the loss of cell renewal capacity. Continuous presence of the inducer is not necessary to achieve terminal differentiation. In contrast to what is seen for other inducers (sodium butyrate and hemin), one of the early effects of ara-C treatment is the marked decrease of c-myc mRNA expression after the first 4 hours of induction, whereas N-ras and histone 4 expression remain constant during the first 48 h. Our results suggest that ara-C treatment can irreversibly activate the erythroid differentiative program of K-562 cells.