MUTATION OF CHINESE-HAMSTER V79-CELLS AND TRANSFORMATION AND MUTATION OF MOUSE FIBROBLAST C3H-10T1/2 CLONE 8-CELLS BY AFLATOXIN-B1 AND 4 OTHER FUROCOUMARINS ISOLATED FROM 2 NIGERIAN MEDICINAL-PLANTS

  • 1 January 1983
    • journal article
    • research article
    • Vol. 43  (3) , 1054-1058
Abstract
Mutation by aflatoxin B1 (AFB1), imperatorin, marmesin, chalepin and 8-methoxypsoralen (MOP), with and without black light (BL; long-wavelength UV light) activation, was determined at the hypoxanthine-guanine phosphoribosyltransferase locus (8-azaguanine resistance) in Chinese hamster V79 cells and at the ouabain locus in mouse C3H/10T1/2 cells. Transformation by these furocoumarins under the same activation conditions was also investigated in C3H/10T1/2 cells. In V79 cells, AFB1 induced a 4-fold maximum mutation frequency over controls under BL activation at a concentration of 5 .mu.g/ml; marmesian induced a 2-fold increased mutation frequency at 1.5 .mu.g/ml; MOP induced a 19-fold increase at 10 .mu.g/ml; chalepin induced a 3-fold increase at 5 .mu.g/ml; and imperatorin induced a 20-fold increase at 10 .mu.g/ml. Essentially no mutation was observed at the ouabain-resistant (Oua'') locus in C3H/10T1/2 cells with any of these compounds. In the transformation assays, type II and type III foci were observed at a 1-.mu.g/ml addition of AFB1 with or without BL activation; while with MOP and imperatorin, these types of foci were observed only with BL activation. Marmesin, although relatively more cytotoxic than the other furocoumarins studied, with a 50% lethal dose of less than 0.5 .mu.g/ml, was not as mutagenic or potentially carcinogenic as were AFB1, imperatorin, or MOP with BL activation. These furocoumarins are considered to be involved in the etiology of the high incidence of skin cancer in Nigeria. Exposure to these furocoumarins may constitute a real carcinogenic hazard.

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