The Bcl-2 protein blocks programmed cell death and becomes overproduced in many follicular non-Hodgkin's lymphomas as the result of t(14; 18) translocations involving the Bcl-2 gene. Mcl-1 is a recently discovered gene whose encoded protein has significant homology with Bcl-2 but whose function remains unknown. In this study, we compared the in vivo patterns of Bcl-2 and Mcl-1 protein production in normal and neoplastic lymph node biopsies by immunohistochemical means using specific polyclonal antisera. Intracellular Mcl-1 immunoreactivity was located primarily in the cytosol in a punctate pattern and was also seen in association with the nuclear envelope in many cases, similar to the results obtained for Bcl-2, which resides in the outer mitochondrial membrane, nuclear envelope, and endoplasmic reticulum. In 4 of 4 reactive tonsils and 28 of 28 nodes with reactive follicular hyperplasia, reciprocal patterns of Bcl-2 and Mcl-1 protein expression were observed. Bcl-2 immunostaining was highest in mantle zone lymphocytes and absent from most germinal center cells, whereas Mcl-1 immunoreactivity was highest in germinal center lymphocytes and absent from mantle zone lymphocytes. Mcl-1 was also expressed in some interfollicular lymphocytes, particularly those that had the appearance of activated lymphocytes. Similar to the patterns of Bcl-2 and mcl-1 expression seen in reactive nodes, Mcl-1 protein was largely absent from the malignant cells in 2 of 2 mantle cell lymphomas, whereas strong Bcl-2 immunostaining was found in these cells. In contrast to normal nodes, however, the neoplastic follicles of t(14;18) containing follicular non-Hodgkin's lymphomas immunostained positively for both Bcl-2 and Mcl-1 in 24 of 27 cases. Intense immunostaining for Mcl-1 was also observed in Reed-Sternberg cells in 2 of 2 cases of Hodgkin's disease but Bcl-2 immunoreactivity was present at much lower levels. These findings demonstrate that the levels of Mcl-1 and Bcl-2 proteins are differentially regulated in normal and neoplastic cells in lymph nodes and thus suggest different roles for these proteins in the control of cell life and death in these tissues.