Cisplatin, doxorubicin and daunorubicin (drugs which intercalate with DNA) influenced the membrane-bound procoagulant potential of murine thioglycollate-induced peritoneal exudate (TG-PEC) macrophages and the monocytoid cell line WEHI 265, whereas the antimetabolites 5-fluorouracil and methotrexate had no effect. Enhanced procoagulant was not caused by non-specific toxicity of these agents. Cisplatin directly increased the procoagulant expressed on WEHI 265 cells, whereas MPCA on TG-PEC was enhanced only when cisplatin was combined with a second stimulant, either bacterial lipopolysaccharide (LPS) or interferon (IFN gamma). WEHI 265 cells failed to respond to the anthracycline drugs, either alone or in combination with LPS, whereas they enhanced the IFN gamma response. Doxorubicin and daunorubicin increased the LPS response of TG-PEC by approximately 4-fold and the IFN gamma response by approximately 10-fold. Pulsing experiments suggested that the anthracyclines enhanced procoagulant expression by a mechanism different from cisplatin. Daunorubicin primed TG-PEC within 4 hr to respond to low levels of LPS, whereas either LPS or cisplatin primed these cells to respond to cisplatin or LPS respectively. Furthermore, the procoagulant expressed by TG-PEC stimulated by LPS/cisplatin had properties of tissue factor (TF: 50% total activity) and Factor VIIa (50% total procoagulant)-like activities, whereas the predominant procoagulant on LPS/anthracycline activated TG-PEC was TF-like (70% total activity) with weak Factor VIIa and prothrombinase-like properties.