2-Naphthylamine (2-NA), a bladder carcinogen, is contained in cigarette smoke. DNA adduct formation is thought to be a major cause of DNA damage by carcinogenic aromatic amines. We have investigated whether a metabolite of 2-NA, 2-nitroso-1-naphthol (NO-naphthol) causes oxidative DNA damage, using (32)P-labeled DNA fragments. We compared the mechanism of DNA damage induced by NO-naphthol with that by N-hydroxy-4-aminobiphenyl (4-ABP(NHOH)), a metabolite of 4-aminobiphenyl, another smoking-related bladder carcinogen. NO-naphthol caused Cu(II)-mediated DNA damage at T > C > G residues, with non-enzymatic reduction by NADH. Catalase and bathocuproine, a Cu(I)-specific chelator, inhibited the DNA damage, suggesting the involvement of H(2)O(2) and Cu(I). Some free. OH scavengers also attenuated NO-naphthol-induced DNA damage, while free. OH scavengers had no effect on the DNA damage induced by 4-ABP(NHOH). This difference suggests that the reactive species formed by NO-naphthol has more free. OH-character than that by 4-ABP(NHOH). A high-pressure liquid chromatograph equipped with an electrochemical detector showed that NO-naphthol induced 8-oxo-7,8-dihydro-2'-deoxyguanosine formation in the presence of NADH and Cu(II). The oxidative DNA damage by these amino-aromatic compounds may participate in smoking-related bladder cancer, in addition to DNA adduct formation.