Data concerning the susceptibility of DNA to damage by reactive oxygen and nitrogen species and other endogenous compounds produced by physiological stress in marine organisms is lacking, especially in bivalve mollusks. In this article, we analyzed the background levels of lipid peroxidation (malondialdehyde, MDA), 8-oxo-7,8-dihydro-2'-deoxyguanosine (8-oxodGuo) and 1,N-2-etheno-2'-deoxyguanosine (1,N-2-epsilondGuo) in digestive gland and mantle tissue of mussels Perna perna collected at a cultivation zone in Florianopolis (Santa Catarina, Brazil). The present data point to the possibility of the use of both 8-oxodGuo and 1,N-2-epsilondGuo as complementary indicators of oxidative stress processes in mussels. A sensitive method coupling high performance liquid chromatography to mass spectrometry was applied for the detection of 1,N-2-epsilondGuo in mussel tissues. (C) 2003 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.