title: Mutagenic and clastogenic activity of nitracrine analogues in cultured V79 Chinese hamster cells.
abstract: Nitracrine is used clinically as an antitumour agent, and analogues are actively being developed in some laboratories. The mutagenic activity of 9-[(3-dimethylaminopropyl)amino]-acridine and its 1-nitro (nitracrine), 2-, 3- and 4-nitro derivatives was evaluated at the 6-thioguanine and ouabain resistance loci in cultured Chinese hamster fibroblasts (V79-171b cell line). The des-nitro, 2- and 3-nitro caused no statistically significant mutagenic activity at either locus. Each of these 3 compounds weakly increased (approximately 2-fold) the incidence of micronuclei in the same cell line when tested at cytotoxic doses. Both the 1- and 4-nitro compounds increased the incidence of 6-thioguanine resistant cells from around 1 in 10(-6) to approximately 1 in 10(-4). The former compound significantly increased the frequency of ouabain-resistant cells. Both of these compounds were potent inducers of micronuclei in V79-171b cells, indicating high clastogenic activity. It would appear prudent to regard both of these compounds as potential human carcinogens.
authors.affiliation: Cancer Research Laboratory, University of Auckland Medical School, New Zealand.
authors.forename: L R
authors.initials: LR
authors.lastname: Ferguson
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: van Zijl
mesh_terms: D000609:Aminoacridines / Q000494:pharmacology*; D000818:Animals; D002460:Cell Line; D002470:Cell Survival / Q000187:drug effects; D002869:Chromosome Aberrations; D006224:Cricetinae; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D009153:Mutagens; D009564:Nitracrine / Q000031:analogs & derivatives / Q000494:pharmacology*; D013997:Time Factors
chemical_list: D000609:Aminoacridines; D009153:Mutagens; D009564:Nitracrine