The elaboration of the extracellular matrix was investigated by radio-autoradiography after incubation of aortic strips, isolated from thoracic aortas of healthy and atherosclerotic rabbits, with tritium labeled proline. Time course experiments indicated that there was a delay of about one hour before significant amounts (25%) of tritiated macromolecules were released from the intact smooth muscle cells. On the contrary, both, the level of incorporation and the rate of excretion of macromolecular components by modified smooth muscle cells of the atherosclerotic area from injured strips were increased. The results indicate that, under the conditions of incubation in vitro, the modified smooth muscle cells of atherosclerotic plaque exhibit a particular behaviour for both, quantitative and qualitative features of macro-molecular synthesis of the extracellular matrix.