Effect of excessive ingestion of manganese (Mn) on the mouse thyroid was assessed under the conditions of normal intake of iodide. Female mouse thyroids were enlarged after 7 weeks of administration of 200 mg/l MnCl2 X 4H2O in drinking water; 2.74 +/- 0.25 mg for control (N = 56), and 3.31 +/- 0.28 mg for Mn-treated group (N = 85) (p less than 0.001). In contrast, male mouse thyroids never became goitrous following this treatment. Manganese was goitrogenic to the castrated male mouse, but it had no effect on the testosterone-treated castrated male mouse, indicating the involvement of androgen in goiter formation. Oral administration of Mn did not severely affect blocked T/S of 125I or iodine metabolism in the thyroid. A morphological study, however, revealed that the epithelial cell in the Mn-treated mouse thyroid became flatter than that of the control. The lumens were filed with colloid in Mn-treated female mouse thyroid. The serum levels of thyroxine (T4), but not triiodothyronine (T3), were slightly reduced by Mn. These informations suggest that Mn can be a mild goitrogen for the female mouse and that the etiology of goiter formation can be interpreted by retention of colloid in the lumen.