Two aminobenzyl alcohols (ABAs) and 3 nitrobenzyl alcohols (NBAs) were studied in the Syrian hamster embryo (SHE) cell transformation system. All compounds induced statistically significant increases in morphological transformation of SHE cells. 2-ABA and 3-ABA induced dose-dependent increases in transformation, while the transformation frequencies for 2-NBA and 4-NBA decreased when concentrations were increased above 0.2 mM. When tested in an intercellular communication assay using dye transfer between SHE cells, 2-ABA inhibited communication, and 2-NBA and 4-NBA enhanced communication. Thus, the inverse dose-response of 2-NBA related to an increased intercellular communication.