title: Genetic activity of actinomycin D in Saccharomyces cerevisiae but not in Escherichia coli.
abstract: The potential of actinomycin D for induction of forward mutation (ADE-), reversion (TRP+), gene conversion, and mitotic recombination, was examined using haploid and diploid strains of yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. No increase in forward or reverse mutations or gene conversion was detected, but actinomycin D induced up to 13-fold increases in mitotic recombinants and a 2-fold increase in numbers of aberrant colonies, in a non-selective assay for genetic activity. Actinomycin D was non-mutagenic in a fluctuation test using Escherichia coli strain WP2 UvrA-. This furnishes an example of a mutagen which is negative in bacteria but has genetic activity in yeast, emphasizing the need for using a battery of microbial tests for determining the genetic activity of any given chemical.
mesh_terms: D003609:Dactinomycin / Q000494:pharmacology*; D004926:Escherichia coli / Q000235:genetics; D009152:Mutagenicity Tests; D009153:Mutagens; D012441:Saccharomyces cerevisiae / Q000235:genetics
chemical_list: D009153:Mutagens; D003609:Dactinomycin