A lead in the search for cellular determinants favoring neoplastic transformation may be provided by the pronounced tissue specificity of the oncogenic effect of certain carcinogens which do not require enzymatic metabolic activation, i.e., in cases where this specificity cannot be due to tissue differences in the activity of enzymes involved in the formation of the ultimate reactants. A carcinogen that fulfills this condition is the ethylating agent N-ethyl-N-nitrosourea (EtNU). Alkylation of nucleic acid constituents by N-nitroso compounds in relation to mutagenesis and carcinogenesis has received considerable attention recently
