Integration of mammalian, microbial and drosophila procedures for evaluating chemical mutagens.

cis-Platinum(II)diamminodichloride (PDD), an anti-tumor agent, induced auxotrophic mutations in Escherichia coli, some of which were reverted to prototrophy by exposure to PDD, 2-aminopurine (2-AP), and N-methyl-N′-nitro-N-nitroguanidine (NTG), but not ICR derivatives. Similarly, various 2-AP-, NTG-, and ultraviolet light-induced auxotrophs were reverted to prototrophy by PDD. Some PDD-induced auxotrophs carried nonsense mutations and others could be phenotypically suppressed by growth with streptomycin. Although these findings suggest that PDD promotes base substitutions, this mutagen may also cause base subtractions because (like NTG)it induced, at reduced frequency, reversion to prototrophy of certain ICR-induced auxotrophs. Isomeric trans-platinum(II)diamminodichloride, which lacks anti-tumor activity, was an ineffective mutagen. Near-optimal conditions for PDD-induced mutagenesis entailed prolonged cultivation with low levels of mutagen where the frequency of forward mutation to auxotrophy was 10⁻³ and that of a selected trp isolate to prototrophy was 10⁻².     

Effect of pH and temperature on nitrosamide-induced mutation in Escherichia coli

N-Nitroso-N-methylurea (NMU) and N-nitroso-N-ethylurea (NEU) induced reversions in four mutant auxotropic strains of E. coli. Among other nitroso compounds tested only N-methyl-N′-nitro-N-nitrosoguanidine (MNG) was an active mutagen in the system used.     

Hamster hepatocyte-mediated activation of procarcinogens to mutagens in the L5178Y/TK mutation assay

Eight procarcinogens including three nitrosamines, three polycyclic hydrocarbons, and two aromatic amines were tested for mutagenic potential at the thymidine kinase (TK) locus in L5178Y mouse lymphoma cells co-cultivated with viable hamster hepatocytes. All eight chemicals produced substantial mutagenic activity as indicated by increased trifluorothymidine resistance in L5178Y cells treated in the presence of hepatocytes. Mutagenic responses to benzo[a]pyrene, 3-methyl-cholanthrene, N-nitrosodiethylamine, and N-nitrosodipropylamine first increased, then plateaued within the range of mutagen concentrations tested, while consistent dose-dependent increases in mutant frequencies were observed following 2-aminoanthracene, 2-aminofluorene, or N-nitrosodimethylamine treatments. The relatively flat portions of the mutant frequency curves for benzo[a]pyrene and 3-methylcholanthrene coincided with maximum chemical solubility as obvious from visible or microscopically detectable precipitate. These hamster cells readily facilitated the metabolism of 1,2-benzanthracene to a detectable mutagen and were especially competent in the activation of the two aromatic amines. Thus, cultured hamster hepatocytes can activate a variety of chemical carcinogens including polycyclic hydrocarbons to mutagens in a whole cell-mediated in vitro assay using L5178Y/TK^+/? cells as the target organism.     

Localization of chemically induced breaks in chromosomes of human leucocytes

The distribution of 16942 chromosome breaks induced by 3 chemical agents— N,N,N-triethylene thiophosphamide (thiosphosphamide, Thio-TEPA), dihydrochloride-1,6-di(choloroethyl)-amino-1,6-desoxymannitol (Degranol), and mitomycin-C (MC)—and their dependence on the moment at which the mutagen was introduced to the cultures, the dose of the mutagen, the time of fixation of the cultures and the sex and age of the donor, were statistically investigated.As control served the distribution of spontaneous chromosome breaks found in a group of 1649 newborns.The spontaneous breaks were randomly localized on the chromosomal groups, whereas the induced breaks showed a non-random distribution. It was demonstrated that the experimental conditions, which have been investigated, had no influence on the distributions of chromosome breaks within the groups. “Hot-spots” and “cold-spots” could be established along the length of the chromosomes. The localization of these spots did not depend on the experimental parameters investigated, but on the chemical agent by which they were induced.The possible cause of discrepancies between the present results and those reported by other authors are discussed.     

Correlation between lethality and DNA single-strand breaks in Bacillus subtilis cells treated with N-methyl-N'-nitro-N-nitrosoguanidine

The effects of N-methyl-N′-nitro-N-nitrosoguanidine (MNNG) treatment two Bacillus subtilis strains which exhibit different UV sensitivities were monitored at both the cellular (survival) and subcellular (DNA strand break) levels. The MNNG-induced single strand DNA breaks (SSB) in either strain, as measured by alkaline sucrose gradient centrifugation, were shown to be well correlated with lethality. These DNA lesions were shown by a computer simulation to be randomly induced. Cell survival after MNNG treatment is inversely related to the number of replication forks per cell which in turn depends upon the doubling time of the culture and the growth phase. The production of single-strand breaks and cell killing are proportional to the log of the initial MNNG concentration and may imply that decomposition of the mutagen is (pseudo) second order.     

Further studies on the induction of mutation in Haemophilus influenzae by N-methyl-N′-nitro-N-nitrosoguanidine: Lack of an inducible error-free repair system and the effect of exposure medium

Haemophilis influenzae is shown to lack the inducible, error-free repair system for alkylation damage that others have found in Escherichia coli. Prior growth in a low concentration of N-methyl-N′-nitro-N-nitrosoguanidine had only an additive effect on a subsequent brief exposure to a high concentration. Furthermore, chloramphenicol did not significantly modify the mutagenic response. In both respects, H. influenzae differs from E. coli. Experiments carried out in preparation for these tests showed that exposure to N-methyl-N′-nitro-N-nitrosoguanidine in complex growth medium was more effective by about an order of magnitude than exposure in pH 6.0 tris-maelare buffer in inducing mutations, in killing the cells, and in causing strand breaks in the preexisting DNA and gaps in newly synthesized DNA. Thus the effect of the medium is on the amount of initial damage rather than on some special feature of the mutation process. Part but not all of the effect can be accounted for by the difference in pH of the 2 media. The nature of the mutagenic process is the same under the 2 exposure conditions; i.e., reparable pre-mutational damage is produced by the agent and subsequently converted to final mutation by replication. The dose—effect curves have a non-linear initial portion under both exposure conditions, and possible reasons for this non-linearity are discussed.     

Conditions for mutagenesis by N-methyl-N′-nitro-N-nitrosoguanidine and relationships of A. tumefaciens mutants to crown-gall tumor induction

Optimum mutagenesis of Agrobacterium tumefaciens by N-methyl-N′-nitro-N-nitrosoguanidine occurred at pH 6.5 using 250 μg/ml of the mutagen for 3 h at 30°. Antibiotic-resistant mutants and amino acid auxotrophs were selected and scored for crown-gall tumor-inducing ability on Helianthus annuus (sunflower). Mutants resistant to neomycin, kanamycin or rifampicin were not directly affected in their tumor-inducing ability. Mutants that were resistant to neomycin were also resistant to kanamycin and vice versa. Various amino acid auxotrophs varied in virulence. Some of the auxotrophs that required histidine, leucine or tryptophan had simultaneously lost their virulence. The alteration of virulence of the organism is not dependent on its growth since the avirulent auxotrophs when supplemented with the amino acid requirement grew in vivo almost as well as the prototrophic strains and yet remained avirulent.     

Effect of adenosine 3′,5′ monophosphate on the mutation frequency induced by N-methyl-N′-nitro-N-nitrosoguanidine

The effect of increased cellular concentrations of adenosine 3′,5′ monophosphate (cAMP) upon mutation frequency induced by N-methyl-N′-nitro-N-nitrosoguanidine (MNNG) was studied in V79 Chinese hamster lung cells. Incubation with either forskolin, which increased the accumulation of cAMP, or 8BrcAMP, an analogue of cAMP, resulted in an increase in the mutation frequency which was concentration-dependent, regardless of whether these agents were added before or after mutagen treatment. Increased cAMP concentrations were shown in these cells to inhibit growth; however, this does not seem to be the mechanism responsible for the increase in mutation frequency as low serum concentrations which also retard growth reduced the mutation frequency observed with MNNG.     

Methionine-alpha-naphthyl ester, a useful chromogenic substrate for esterproteases of the mouse submandibular gland.

The two aminoacid esters, N-acetyl-l-methionine α-naphthyl ester and N-acetyl-l-alanine α-naphthyl ester have been found to be suitable chromogenic substrates for the demonstration of mouse submandibular esterproteases. Using these substrates, a complex banding pattern of esterproteases was demonstrated by disc electrophoresis of mouse submandibular gland. Of these, protease A, epidermal growth factor binding protein, and the γ-subunits of 7 S nerve growth factor could be identified.     

Mutagenicity of nitrofuran derivatives, including furylfuramide, a food preservative.

The effects of sodium azide (NaN₃) in combination with diethyl sulfate (dES) or N-methyl-N′-nitrosourea (MNH) on mutation frequency in barley were studied. It was found that sodium azide produced high frequencies of chlorophyll mutations when used alone and has a synergistic effect on mutation yields following MNH treatments. However, the mutation frequency was decreased whe azide was applied following dES treatment of seeds. The mutagenic efficiency of azide was found to be high, possibly because of low “physiological” damage. The synergistic increase in mutation yields by MNH and azide treatment indicates that azide has unusual promise as a mutagen for both practical and research applications.     

Cyclopalladation of N-phenylbenzamides: Synthesis and structure of bimetallic palladium(II)-complexes

Three bimetallic palladium(II) complexes were generated by cyclopalladation of N-methyl-N-phenylbenzamide derivatives, substrates known to undergo oxidative intramolecular cross-coupling via palladium catalysis. These isolable Pd-complexes were characterized by X-ray crystallography. Stoichiometric and catalytic experiments with [(3-methoxy-N-methyl-N-phenylbenzamide)Pd(μ-TFA)]₂ were investigated, and this palladium complex was found to be an effective precatalyst for oxidative cross-coupling.     

Amidohydrolase Process: Expanding the use of l-N-carbamoylase/N-succinyl-amino acid racemase tandem for the production of different optically pure l-amino acids

A bienzymatic system comprising an N-succinylamino acid racemase from Geobacillus kaustophilus CECT4264 (GkNSAAR) and an enantiospecific l-N-carbamoylase from Geobacillus stearothermophilus CECT43 (BsLcar) has been developed. This biocatalyst has been able to produce optically pure natural and non-natural l-amino acids starting from racemic mixtures of N-acetyl-, N-formyl- and N-carbamoyl-amino acids by dynamic kinetic resolution. The fastest conversion rate was found with N-formyl-amino acids, followed by N-carbamoyl- and N-acetyl-amino acids, and GkNSAAR proved to be the limiting step of the system due to its lower specific activity. Metal ion cobalt was essential for the activity of the biocatalyst and the system was optimally active when Co²⁺ was added directly to the reaction mixture. The optimum pH for the biocatalyst proved to be 8.0, for both N-formyl- and N-carbamoyl-amino acid substrates, whereas optimum temperature ranges were 45–55 °C for N-formyl-amino acids and 55–70 °C for N-carbamoyl-derivatives. The bienzymatic system was equally efficient in converting aromatic and aliphatic substrates. Total conversion was also achieved using high substrate concentrations (100 and 500 mM) with no noticeable inhibition. This “Amidohydrolase Process” enables the production of both natural and non-natural l-amino acids from a broad substrate spectrum with yields of over 95%.     

Creating auxotrophic mutants in Methylophilus methylotrophus AS1 by combining electroporation and chemical mutagenesis

Stable auxotrophic mutants of the methylotroph Methylophilus methylotrophus AS1 were obtained by a novel mutagenesis technique in which electroporation is used to transport the chemical mutagen N-methyl-N′-nitro-N-nitrosoguanidine (MNNG) across the cell membrane. By combining chemical mutagenesis with electroporation and screening single colonies for auxotrophy in 36 different amino acids and growth factors, 3 auxotrophs per 156 colonies screened were obtained, whereas no auxotrophs were found with chemical mutagenesis alone. MNNG mutagen toxicity was also increased in the methylotroph with this novel mutagenesis technique (death rate 96% compared to 79%). This technique did not increase the mutation rate for strain Escherichia coli BK6 which responds well to simple exposure to the mutagen. Received: 9 December 1996 / Received revision: 31 March 1997 / Accepted: 13 April 1997     

Substrate Specificity of Cytoplasmic N-Glycosyltransferase

N-Linked protein glycosylation is a very common post-translational modification that can be found in all kingdoms of life. The classical, highly conserved pathway entails the assembly of a lipid-linked oligosaccharide and its transfer to an asparagine residue in the sequon NX(S/T) of a secreted protein by the integral membrane protein oligosaccharyltransferase. A few species in the class of γ-proteobacteria encode a cytoplasmic N-glycosylation system mediated by a soluble N-glycosyltransferase (NGT). This enzyme uses nucleotide-activated sugars to modify asparagine residues with single monosaccharides. As these enzymes are not related to oligosaccharyltransferase, NGTs constitute a novel class of N-glycosylation catalyzing enzymes. To characterize the NGT-catalyzed reaction, we developed a sensitive and quantitative in vitro assay based on HPLC separation and quantification of fluorescently labeled substrate peptides. With this assay we were able to directly quantify glycopeptide formation by Actinobacillus pleuropneumoniae NGT and determine its substrate specificities: NGT turns over a number of different sugar donor substrates and allows for activation by both UDP and GDP. Quantitative analysis of peptide substrate turnover demonstrated a strikingly similar specificity as the classical, oligosaccharyltransferase-catalyzed N-glycosylation, with NX(S/T) sequons being the optimal NGT substrates.     

Methods for Mutation and Selection of the Ergot Fungus

A new method is described in which the Salkowski reaction is used for the rapid selection of alkaloid-producing mutants of the ergot fungus. This method was used to investigate the influence of a second mutation with N-methyl-N′-nitro-N-nitrosoguanidine (NTG) on various mutants selected by a preliminary NTG mutation of Claviceps sp. strain SD 58. Three groups of mutants were used: high alkaloid producers, low alkaloid producers, and auxotrophs. Results indicated that a second mutation of all three types of mutants could improve alkaloid yield and vegetative vigor. In addition, a second mutation increased the frequency of auxotroph production. The difficulty of producing stable mutants from ergot strains that have multinucleated cells and that do not readily produce conidia in culture, such as an ergotamine-producing strain, was overcome by first forming protoplasts of the fungus and then subjecting them to the mutagen. Stable auxotrophs were obtained in this manner.     

Appearance of Virulent Bacteriophages in Lysogenic E. coli Cultures after Prolonged Growth in the Presence of Triethylenemelamine

Continuous culture of coli 12λ, P22, 600-434, 600-21, and 600-299 in the presence of triethylenemelamine (TEM) results in the appearance of a new virulent virus which attacks the parent culture. N-Methyl-N'-nitro-N-nitrosoguanidine (MNNG) is effective with 600-21 and ultraviolet light with 12λ and 600-21. The cultures which produce the virulent virus continue to do so indefinitely in the absence of the mutagen, but are not lysogenic for the virus. Most of the cells in such cultures are resistant to the virus and do not produce any, but there are a few mutant cells sensitive to the virus and the virus multiplies by infection of these sensitive mutants.     

Podophyllotoxin resistance: A codominant selection system for quantitative mutagenesis studies in mammalian cells

Mutants resistant to the microtubule inhibitor podophyllotoxin (Pod^R), a codominant marker, can be readily selected in various mammalian cell lines such as, CHO, HeLa, mouse L cells, Syrian hamster cells (BHK₂₁) and a mouse teratocarcinoma cell line OC15. In CHO cells, the recovery of Pod^R mutants is not affected by cell density (up to 1 × 10⁶ cells per 100-mm diameter dish), and after treatment with the mutagen ethyl methanesulfonate maximum mutagenic effect is achieved after a relatively short expression time (40–48 h). The frequency of Pod^R mutants in various cell lines increased in a dose-dependent manner in response to treatment with the mutagens ethyl methanesulfonate and N-methyl-N′-nitro-N-nitrosoguanidine. The Pod^R selection system thus provides a new genetic marker which should prove useful in studies of quantitative mutagenesis in mammalian cells.     

Increased sensitivity of xeroderma pigmentosum cells to some chemical carcinogens and mutagens

The clone-forming capacity and level of DNA repair was examined on normal human cells and repair-deficient Xeroderma pigmentosum (XP) fibroblasts exposed to various chemical carcinogens and mutagens.The cultured fibroblasts were treated for 90 min with the carcinogenic and mutagenic 4-nitroquinoline 1-oxide (4NQO), 4-hydroxyaminoquinoline 1-oxide (4HAQO), 2-methyl-4-nitroquinoline 1-oxide (2-Me-4NQO), 3-methyl-4-nitropyridine 1-oxide 3-Me-4NPO) and the non-carcinogenic 6-nitroquinoline 1-oxide (6NQO). The response of the cells to the N-oxides was compared to that induced by the mutagen and carcinogen N-methyl-N′-nitro-N-nitrosoguanidine (MNNG) and UV-irradiation.The XP cells showed (1) a reduced level of DNA repair synthesis when exposed to various carcinogenic N-oxides, (2) no unscheduled DNA synthesis following 6NQO and (3) a normal degree of DNA repair synthesis after treatment with MNNG.When the clone-forming capacity was examined the XP cells exhibited (1) a higher increased sensitivity to the various carcinogenic N-oxides, (2) no reduction in the clone formation following 6NQO and (3) a sensitivity virtually comparable to that of normal cells after treatment with MNNG.The results suggest a link between extent of DNA damage, level of DNA repair and degree of sensitivity in human cells exposed to various chemical carcinogens and which induce DNA alterations that cannot be repaired by DNA repair synthesis.