REVERSION PROFILES OF COOL WHITE FLUORESCENT LIGHT COMPARED WITH FAR ULTRAVIOLET LIGHT: HOMOLOGIES AND DIFFERENCES |
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| Authors: | Thomas A Cebula Erik N Henrikson Philip E Hartman William H Biggley |
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| Institution: | Molecular Biology Branch (HFS-235), CFSAN, FDA, 200 C Street SW, Washington, DC 20204, USA;Department of Biology, The Johns Hopkins University, 3400 North Charles Street, Baltimore, MD 21218, USA |
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| Abstract: | Abstract— General Electric and Sylvania 15 W coolwhite fluorescent lamps emit roughly 6% of their total irradiance as light in the UV spectrum. Illumination of sensitive Salmonella tester strains results in both lethal and mutagenic activities. In contrast, comparable Philips lamps emit lower levels of U V light, especially UVB, and exhibit no detectable lethal or mutagenic effects. The spectra of mutations induced by General Electric coolwhite lamps in histidine-requiring base substitution mutants hisG46 and hisG428 ("reversion profiles") resemble mutagenesis by far UV light (UVC) and differ quite markedly from the spectra of mutations that occur spontaneously. Coolwhite and UVC reversion profiles are not identical, however. The percentage of C to A transversion mutations induced in hisG46 are elevated over those found after UVC treatment, and a strong bias for one particular class of tandem base substitutions (TAA → T GT ) prevails after treatment of hisG428 with coolwhite light, a bias not observed with UVC. Increased attention needs to be given to minimization of exposure to UV light from fluorescent lamps commonly used in homes and workplaces. |
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