Intrinsic and heat shock induced thermotolerance of Saccharomyces cerevisiae was investigated in cells grown on glucose and acetate supplemented media. Heat shocked cells (37 degrees C/30 min), in either medium, exhibited induced synthesis of heat shock proteins (hsp) and trehalose. In all cases, with the notable exception of repressed cells of a relatively thermosensitive strain, heat shock acquisition of thermotolerance also occurred in the absence of protein synthesis and coincident decrease in trehalose accumulation. Results indicted that the marked increase in thermotolerance exhibited by non-fermenting (acetate) cells compared with fermenting (glucose) cells was not closely correlated with levels of hsp or trehalose. It was concluded that mechanisms for intrinsic and induced thermotolerance appear to be different and that growth on acetate endows cells with a biochemical predisposition, other than hsp or trehalose, that confers intrinsic tolerance, a factor which may be subject to heat induced modification.