Nalidixic and five newer 4-quinolones, ciprofloxacin, enoxacin, norfloxacin, ofloxacin and pefloxacin were tested against 576 recent clinical aerobic bacterial isolates. The 4-quinolones were regularly active (MIC90 less than 4 mg/l) against the following bacteria: Staphylococcus aureus, S. epidermidis, S. saprophyticus, different Enterobacteriaceae, Haemophilus influenzae, Campylobacter jejuni, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Agrobacter spp., Aeromonas spp., Plesiomonas spp., Neisseria meningitidis. Other bacteria were usually intermediately susceptible or resistant: different streptococci, Listeria monocytogenes, Nocardia asteroides, P. maltophilia, Achromobacter xylosoxydans and Alcaligenes denitrificans. Ciprofloxacin was the most potent compound, followed by ofloxacin and pefloxacin, norfloxacin and enoxacin being less active. All the 4-quinolones were much more active than nalidixic acid. The MBC/MIC ratios of the 4-quinolones were between 1 and 2 with a majority of strains, and between 2 and 3 with Streptococcus agalactiae, Str. faecalis and L. monocytogenes. A two- to eight-fold increase of MIC was observed by increasing the inoculum 10,000-fold with most of the strains tested. Susceptible bacterial population of Klebsiella pneumoniae, Enterobacter cloacae, Serratia marcescens and P. aeruginosa contained more clones resistant to nalidixic acid (10(4) to 10(8) at four times the MIC) than to 4-quinolones (10(5) to 10(9) at four times the MIC). Supplementing the media with MgSO4 produced smaller inhibition zone diameters with a disc diffusion method than those obtained with non-supplemented agar, with all quinolone or strains. Less regular effect, or no effect was obtained after supplementation with ZnSO4 or Ca(NO3)2.