Polychlorobiphenyls are potent inducers of hepatic cytochrome P450 in various species. Until now, no model based on cultured cells can be considered as a universal surrogate for in vivo metabolism. In this respect, cultured rat hepatocytes, quail hepatocytes, and human hepatoma (HepG2) cells were used to study the effects of 3,3',4,4'-tetrachlorobiphenyl (3,3',4,4'-TCB) and Aroclor 1254 on drug-metabolizing enzymes. The presence of dexamethasone in the culture medium allows the expression and the induction of several cytochrome P450 isoenzymes found in adult cells. Induction of ethoxycoumarin-(ECOD) and ethoxyresorufin-O-deethylase (EROD), activities were measured. Induced P450s were identified by immunoblotting and Northern blotting. Aroclor 1254 induced ECOD activity in all three cell types, but the effect was much stronger in fetal rat hepatocytes than in human or quail cells. Aroclor failed to induce EROD activity in quail cells, had a slight inducer effect in HepG2 cells, and a marked effect in rat hepatocytes. 3,3',4,4'-TCB had no effect in HepG2 cells but significantly increased EROD and ECOD activities, especially the latter, in rat and quail cells. On the immunoblots, specific antibodies revealed essentially CYP1A1 in fetal rat hepatocytes, CYP2B1/2 in quail hepatocytes and CYP3A1 in HepG2 cells. Analysis of Northern blots showed an hybridization with CYP1A1, 2B1 and 3A1 mRNA in fetal rat hepatocytes, CYP3A and 1A mRNA in HepG2 cells, and a form of CYP2 mRNA in fetal quail hepatocytes closely related to homolog rat CYP2E or CYP2C. In quail hepatocytes, induction did not increase proportionally with the concentration of inducer in the culture medium. Instead, the dose-response curves (for EROD activity especially) peaked sharply at 1 muM Aroclor 1254, an effect attributed to changes in membrane fluidity or lipid content. Our results highlight the advantage of using several types of cultured hepatocytes to investigate fundamental aspects of drug-metabolism-linked toxicity, the balance between xenobiotic bioactivation and detoxication being differently affected by PCBs in different animal species.