[en] Binding of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and nitropolycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (NPAH) to rat lung nuclei was investigated. Following carcinogen exposure, nuclei were fractionated into active chromatin, nuclear matrix, low salt, and high salt fractions. Preferential binding to active chromatin and nuclear matrix fractions was observed for benzo(a)pyrene (BP), 6-nitro benzo(a)pyrene, 1,6-dinitropyrene (1,6-DNP), and 1-nitropyrene. Incubation of nuclei with BP, benzo(a)pyrene diolepoxide (BPDE), and 1,6-DNP showed that the selective binding was dependent upon the concentration of chemical with less selectivity at higher concentrations. This study shows that NPAH should be considered as another class of compounds that may exert their biological effects by binding to selected regions of chromatin that are involved in DNA replication and translation. (author)