ASSESSMENT OF GENOTOXICITY AND MUTAGENICITY OF 1,2-DIOXETANES IN HUMAN CELLS USING A PLASMID SHUTTLE VECTOR

Abstract— 1,2-Dioxetanes are efficient sources of triplet excited carbonyl compounds on thermal decomposition. They cause photochemical and photobiological transformations in the dark. In order to study the genotoxicity and mutagenicity of 1,2-dioxetanes, the replicating shuttle vector pZ189 was damaged with 3,3,4-trimethyl-l,2-dioxetane(TrMD) or 3-hydroxymethyl-3,4,4-trimethyl-l,2-dioxetane (HTMD) in vitro and subsequently transfected into normal human lymphoblasts. We found a dose-dependent increase of genotoxicity (decrease of plasmid survival) and increase of mutation frequency with both dioxetanes. However, TrMD was less mutagenic than HTMD at similar genotoxicity. Sequence analysis of the supF gene revealed more point mutations than deletions. Single base substitutions occurred exclusively at G:C sites: 94.6% of point mutations with TrMD and 100% with HTMD were G:C to T:A and G:C to C:G transversions. These are the typical mutations following 7,8-dihydro-8-oxoguanine (8-oxo-G) formation, the main DNA lesion induced by TrMD and HTMD. Only with TrMD we found 5.4% G:C to A:T transitions, probably reflecting the more pronounced ability of TrMD to form some pyrimidine dimers. Our results indicate that 8-oxo-G is also the most relevant modification in in vivo mutagenesis.     

Electronic spectroscopy of small toluene clusters

Small clusters of toluene(n) (n = 1-8) were created in a supersonic expansion of toluene with argon as a carrier gas. Mass-selected resonance enhanced multiphoton ionization spectra of these clusters were recorded for each n. For the dimer, the appearance of the spectrum under warm and very cold conditions was studied. We discuss previous results in the light of the present spectra. For n>2, the spectra resemble very closely that of the dimer.     

Crystal structure of supramolecular complexes formed by 18-crown-6 andcis-anti-cis-dicyclohexano-18-crown-6 (host) with 3,4-diaminofurazane (guest)

An X-ray—diffraction study is reported for two molecular complexes containing 3,4-diamino-1,2,5-oxadiazole as guest (G) with 18-crown-6 (18-C-6) andcis-anti-cis-dicyclohexano-18-crown-6 (DCH-6B) as host. Both complexes are of the polymeric-chain structure with the guest molecule bridging two crown neighbours. ComplexI: [18-C-6*G*H₂O], 111, monoclinic,P2₁/n,a=8.171(1),b=15.042(2),c=16.209(6) Å, =101.15(2)°, finalR-factor 0.068. ComplexII: [DCH-6B*G], 11, monoclinicC2/c,a=21.212(4),b=9.380(2),c=13.049(3) Å, =108.61(3)°, finalR 0.047.     

Synthesis of some heterocyclic systems from nucleophilic substitution reactions with η6-o-dichlorobenzene-η5-cyclopentadienyliron hexafluorophosphate

A method for the synthesis of heterocylic systems related to 9,10-dihydroanthracene with two hetero-atoms at the 9,10-positions is described. It involves the nucleophilic substitution reaction of η⁶-o-dichlorobenzene-η⁵-cyclopentadienyliron hexafluorophosphate with two nucleophilic groups (OH, SH and/or NH₂) located in the 1,2-positions of a benzene ring to give a cyclopentadienyliron complexed heterocycle. Upon pyrolytic sublimation of the complex, the free heterocyclic compound is then obtained.     

Direct synthesis of protected diethyl 1,2-diaminoalkylphosphonates

An efficient, diastereoselective synthesis of 5-substituted (2-thioxo-imidazolidin-4-yl)phosphonic acid diethyl esters from metallated diethyl isothiocyanatomethylphosphonate and activated imines has been developed. The three-step transformation of imidazolidine-2-thione derivatives into 1,2-diaminoalkylphosphonic acids is also described.     

Contributions to the basic problems of complexometry-XXVIII New method for successive determination of calcium and magnesium

A new method for successive determination of calcium and magnesium is proposed. It is based on the indirect determination of calcium in borax media by back-titration of excess of EGTA with lead nitrate. Magnesium is then determined in ammonia buffer with DCTA. For both titrations Thymolphthalexone is used as indicator. The exceptional role of DCTA in direct titration of magnesium is established experimentally and explained.     

The detection of formaldehyde in textiles using interdigitated microelectrode array diffusion layer titration with electrogenerated hypobromite

An interdigitated microelectrode array (IDA) was applied to the determination of formaldehyde released from textiles produced in industry. The proposed method is based on formaldehyde reaction with hypobromite which is formed in weakly basic media by control current electrooxidation of bromide on the generator segment of the IDA array. The unreacted hypobromite diffuses through the gap between individually polarisable IDA segments and it is amperometrically detected on the collector segment of the IDA. The efficiency of this nonconvective transfer process in the absence of formaldehyde was substantially higher (78%) in comparison with that when using the rotating ring disc electrode. The influence of the added formaldehyde on the transfer process can be utilised to develop a simple and sensitive analytical procedure for formaldehyde detection with a detection limit of 4×10⁻⁶ mol dm⁻³.     

Irreversible and Reversible Deactivation of Bilirubin Oxidase by Urate

Oxygen is electroreduced to water on a carbon cathode coated with wired bilirubin oxidase in a pH 7.4 0.15 M NaCl phosphate buffer solution at 37 °C at much lesser polarization than it is on a pure platinum cathode in 0.5 M H₂SO₄. While the wired bilirubin oxidase cathode operates for over a week in the aerated or oxygenated buffer solution, it is degraded rapidly when in serum. We reported earlier that in the presence of O₂ an intermediate product of the electrooxidation of urate, which is a normal serum component, irreversibly damages the wired bilirubin oxidase and also reported that the electrocatalyst is irreversibly damaged, in the absence of urate, when it is brought, by disconnecting the electrode, to the O₂/H₂O half cell potential at pH 7.4. Here we report that a) dissolved bilirubin oxidase is irreversibly and rapidly damaged by urate in the presence of O₂; and b) that the immobilized wired bilirubin oxidase electrocatalyst is not only irreversibly deactivated by urate in the presence of O₂ in a few hours, but is initially reversibly deactivated, in 1 min or less, by the urate in the presence of O₂.     

The [4Fe-4S](2+) cluster in reconstituted biotin synthase binds S-adenosyl-L-methionine

The combination of resonance Raman, electron paramagnetic resonance and M?ssbauer spectroscopies has been used to investigate the effect of S-adenosyl-l-methionine (SAM) on the spectroscopic properties of the [4Fe-4S]2+ cluster in biotin synthase. The results indicate that SAM interacts directly at a unique iron site of the [4Fe-4S]2+ cluster in BioB and support the hypothesis of a common inner-sphere mechanism for the reductive cleavage of SAM in the radical SAM family of Fe-S enzymes.