Polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins (PCDDs) and dibenzofurans (PCDFs), considered as endocrine disruptors, tend to accumulate in fatty tissues. Dioxin-responsive element chemical activated luciferase gene expression assay (DRE-luciferase assay) has been recognized as a semi-quantitative method for screening dioxins for its fast and low-cost as compared with HRGC/HRMS. However, some problems with the bioassay, including specificity, detection variation resulted from different cleanup strategies, and uncertainty of false-negative or false-positive results, remain to be overcome. Cadmium is a prevalent environmental contaminant around the world. This study was aimed to examine the effects of cadmium on the 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD)-induced activation of aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR)-mediated gene expression in human hepatoma cells (Huh7-DRE-Luc cells and Huh7 cells). Ethoxyresorufin-O-deethylase (EROD) and DRE-luciferase assay were employed to determine the enzyme activity of cytochrome P450 1A1 (CYP1A1) and activation of AhR, respectively. The results showed that Cd2+ levels significantly inhibited the induction of TCDD-induced CYP1A1 and DRE luciferase activation in hepatoma cells. The 50% inhibited concentrations (IC50) of CdCl2 were 0.414 mu M (95% confidence interval (C.I.): 0.230-0.602 mu M) in Huh7-DRE-Luc cells and 23.2 mu M (95% C.I.: 21.7-25.4 mu M) in Huh7 cells. Accordingly, prevention of interference with non-dioxin-like compounds in a DRE-luciferase assay is of great importance in an extensive cleanup procedure. (C) 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.