The effects of prolonged exposure to nitrous oxide on the hemopoietic progenitor cells in bone marrow and spleen in mice were investigated. Fifty percent nitrous oxide caused a marked decrease in the number of pluripotent stem cells (CFU-S) and granulocyte-macro-phage progenitor cells (GM-CFC) in the spleen, whereas it caused only a slight decrease in these cells in the bone marrow. These results suggest that prolonged exposure to nitrous oxide induces damage in the splenic hemopoiesis in mice.