Fluroxene mutagenicity.

The commercially available volatile anesthetic fluroxene (2,2,2-trifluoroethyl vinyl ether) which contains the stabilizer N-phenyl-1-napthylamine, was tested for mutagenicity using four strains of S. typhimurium, TA1535, TA1537, TA98 and TA100, and one strain of E. coli, WP2. In addition, purified fluroxene; N-phenyl-1-napthylamine; trifluoroethanol, a major metabolite of fluoroxene; and urine from rats anesthetized with fluroxene were tested. Several procedures were utilized including exposure of bacteria to vapor in desiccators and in liquid suspension. Results indicate that fluroxene, but not its stabilizer, was mutagenic to strains TA1535, TA100 and WP2 only in liquid suspension and only in the presence of a rat-liver enzyme system. Trifluoroethanol and urine from fluroxene-treated rat were not mutagenic to any strain of bacteria. These findings indicate that fluroxene is a promutagen which requires preincubation before it is recognized. Further experiments were performed with enzymes prepared from mouse, hamster and human liver. Fluroxene was mutagenic only in the presence of enzymes prepared from Aroclor 1254 pretreated rodents. Since fluroxene was not mutagenic in the presence of enzymes prepared from three human livers, the significance of these findings to man are unclear.     

Carcinogenicity and mutagenicity testing, then and now.

Cancer is a dread disease worldwide. Mortality of individuals suffering from cancer is high, despite the current improved methods of precocious detection, surgery and therapy. Prevention of cancer is the recognized goal of many activities in cancer research. This aim was recognized early to involve the bioassay of environmental chemicals or mixtures. The first such study involved application of coal tar to the ear of rabbits, and later on to the skin of mice. Subsequently, laboratory rats were introduced, and hamsters were utilized as a substitute for the unwieldy tests in rabbits. Investigators also became concerned with the mechanisms of carcinogenesis, and more definitive approaches to carcinogen bioassay in laboratory animals, as possible indicators of cancer risk in humans. These tests were expensive and lengthy, and did not serve the important purpose of accurately measuring risk of cancer to humans. Once it was realized that DNA and the genetic apparatus might be a key target, rapid bioassays in bacterial and mammalian cell systems were introduced successfully. Thus, batteries of tests are now available to detect effectively human cancer risks, and provide novel approaches to determine the underlying mechanisms, as a sound basis for cancer prevention.     

The mutagenicity of electrocautery smoke.

Careful analysis of electrocautery smoke produced during breast surgery has found organic compounds that are unidentifiable with current analytical techniques. The purpose of this study was to determine the potential mutagenicity of the smoke produced by the electrocautery knife during reduction mammaplasty. Multiple air samples were collected in the operating room during two reduction mammaplasty procedures. Airborne smoke particles were tested for mutagenic potential in both tester strains of Salmonella typhimurium (TA98 and TA100) using the standard Salmonella microsomal test (Ames test). All testing was performed by the Hazard Evaluations and Technical Assistance Branch of the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health. The smoke produced with the electrocautery knife during reduction mammaplasty was found to be mutagenic to the TA98 strain. The Ames test, an established technique for evaluating the mutagenicity of a substance, was convincingly positive for the smoke collected during the breast surgery. Whether the smoke represents a serious health risk to operating room personnel is not known. Development of techniques to limit electrocautery smoke exposure in the operating room appears to be needed, and surgeons should attempt to minimize their exposure.     

Mechanism of mutagenicity by 5-hydroperoxymethyl-2'-deoxyuridine, an intermediate product of ionizing radiation, in bacteria. HPMdU bacterial mutagenicity and oxidation of DNA bases.

The specific objective was to find what processes are responsible for the mutagenicity of 5-hydroperoxymethyl-2'-deoxyuridine (HPMdU), which is a product of ionizing radiation, and what role transition metal ions play in those processes. We found that HPMdU is a more potent mutagen than its decomposition products 5-hydroxymethyl-2'-deoxyuridine (HMdU) and 5-formyl-2'-deoxyuridine (FdU) in the Salmonella typhimurium strains tested, with the TA100 strain being the most sensitive. HMdU exerted intermediate mutagenicity and FdU was the weakest of the three compounds. At 50 nmoles/plate, HPMdU increased the number of revertants by 4-fold, whereas 1000 nmoles HMdU was required to enhance the number of revertants by 5-fold. Pretreatment of TA100 with o-phenanthroline, a membrane-permeable Fe and Cu chelator, caused an increase in mutagenicity of the low HPMdU doses but inhibited that of the 50 nmoles HPMdU/plate, while desferal, a membrane-impermeable Fe chelator, had virtually no effect. Azide (a catalase inhibitor) enhanced HPMdU mutagenicity, whereas 3-amino-1,2,4-triazole (a catalase and peroxidase inhibitor) and ammonium formate (a hydroxyl radical scavenger) were protective. Preincubation of TA100 cells with 20 and 40 nM HPMdU caused dose-dependent formation of the oxidized DNA base derivatives HMdU, thymidine glycol and 8-hydroxyl-2'-deoxyguanosine (8-OHdG), known hydroxyl radical-mediated oxidation products. Cumulatively, these results suggest that the genetic effects of HPMdU are due to its hydroperoxide moiety, which upon reacting with Fe generates hydroxyl radicals that in turn oxidize neighboring bases in cellular DNA. This also may be a mechanism by which ionizing radiation exerts its long-term effects.