Role of metabolism by intestinal bacteria in arbutin-induced immunotoxicity was investigated in splenocyte cultures. Following an incubation of arbutin with 5 different intestinal bacteria for 24 hr, its aglycone hydroquinone could be produced and detected in the bacterial culture media with different amounts. Toxic effects of activated arbutin by intestinal bacteria on lymphoproliferative response were tested in splenocyte cultures from normal mice. Lipopolysaccharide and concanavalin A were used as mitogens for B- and T-cells, respectively. When bacteria cultured medium with arbutin was treated into the splenocytes for 3 days, the medium cultured with bacteria producing large amounts of hydroquinone induced suppression of lymphoproliferative responses, indicating that metabolic activation by intestinal bacteria might be required in arbutin-induced toxicity. The results indicated that the present testing system might be applied for determining the possible role of metabolism by intestinal bacteria in certain chemical-induced immunotoxicity in animal cell cultures.