N-nitroso-N-methylaniline Research Articles

Peroxidases from Tulip Bulbs (Tulipa fosteriana, L.) Oxidize Xenobiotics NNitrosodimethylamine and N-Nitroso-N-methylaniline in vitro

Tulip bulbs (Tulipa fosteriana, L.) contain peroxidases catalyzing the oxidation of the xenobiotics N-nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA) and N-nitroso-N-methylaniline (NMA). Three anionic (A1, A2, A3) and four cationic (B, C, D, E) peroxidases were purified from this tissue, partially characterized and used for kinetic studies. Demethylation of NDMA and NMA producing formaldehyde is catalyzed by one anionic (A1) and three cationic (C, D, E) peroxidases. The oxidation of NDMA by tulip peroxidases exhibits the Michaelis-Menten kinetics. The apparent Michaelis constant and the maximal velocity values for this substrate were determined. On the other hand, non-Michaelian kinetics for the NMA oxidation were observed with tulip peroxidases. The most abundant cationic peroxidase (peroxidase C) was used for detailed enzymatic studies. In addition to formation of formaldehyde, methylaniline, aniline, 4-aminophenol and phenol were found to be metabolites formed from NMA. Phenol was formed presumably by N-demethylation via a benzenediazonium ion, while methylaniline, aniline and 4-aminophenol were products of denitrosation of the substrate. The efficiencies of plant peroxidases to oxidize NDMA and NMA in vitro are compared with those of cytochromes P450 and discussed.

Detection of a new nitrosamine, N-nitroso-N-methylaniline, and other nitrosamines in Icelandic smoked mutton

Varying levels (1-48 ppb) of N-nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA), N-nitrosopyrrolidine (NPYR), and a previously undetected nitrosamine, N-nitroso-N-methylaniline (NMA), were detected in Icelandic smoked mutton. Traces (0.6-2.4 ppb) of N-nitrosothiazolidine (NThZ) and low levels (56-475 ppb) of N-nitrosothiazolidine-4-carboxylic acid (NTCA), the two N-nitroso compounds commonly detected in smoked meats, were also present in such products. Evidence presented suggests that NMA in the meat is produced by the interaction of nitrite and smoke generated by burning sheep dung, the traditional source of fuel used for smoking such products. Nitrosation of laboratory-generated sheep dung smoke produced NMA, as well as NDMA and NPYR. The identity of NDMA, NPYR, and NMA was confirmed by mass spectrometry. It is suggested that the formation of all of the above nitrosamines in Icelandic smoked mutton can be minimized by changing or modifying the method of smoking.

Evidence for an unstable DNA adduct from N-nitroso-N-methylaniline

N-Nitroso-N-methylaniline (NMA) is an esophageal carcinogen in F344 rats. Attempts to detect binding of NMA to DNA or RNA have not been successful. NMA is not mutagenic in the standard Ames bacterial assay, and it did not induce sister chromatid exchanges in mammalian cells. NMA forms the benzenediazonium ion (BDI) during metabolism. This ion has been known to react with aromatic amines, such as adenine, to form triazene coupling products. The purpose of this research was to demonstrate that a triazene adduct, which would be expected to be hydrolytically unstable, was formed by coupling with the adenine residues in DNA. Liver DNA from a rat treated with NMA or from in vitro reactions of BDI with DNA was treated with sodium borohydride. This reaction was shown to result in the reduction of 6-(1-phenyltriazeno)purine to 6-hydrazinopurine (N6-aminoadenine). The hydrolysate of the DNA, presumably containing the hydrazine, was treated with 4-(dimethylamino)naphthaldehyde, and the resulting hydrazone was isolated by reverse-phase HPLC using fluorescence detection. The identity of the adduct was demonstrated by high-resolution mass spectrometry. These data suggest strongly that NMA forms an unstable triazene adduct with adenine in DNA both in vitro and in vivo.

The effects of S9 mix from rat oesophagus, salivary gland, and liver on the mutagenicity of the rat oesophageal carcinogen N-nitroso- N-methylaniline in the Salmonella typhimurium assay

The present study examines the feasibility of using the Salmonella typhimurium plate-incorporation assay of Ames for detecting target-organ specificity with N-nitroso-N-methylaniline (NMA), a compound for which the target site for tumour formation in the rat is the oesophagus. Thus it was anticipated that the oesophagus would bioactivate this compound. The compound has been investigated using S9 from Aroclor- and NMA-induced rat oesophagus, salivary gland and liver in the presence and absence of the co-mutagen, norharman. No response to NMA was seen with oesophageal S9 even though benzo[a]pyrene produced a dose-related increase in revertants in strain TA98 and TA100. No response to NMA was seen with salivary-gland S9. However, a response was produced with Aroclor-induced rat-liver S9 in the presence of norharman and with NMA-induced rat-liver S9 in the absence of norharman.

The effect of substituents in the aromatic ring on carcinogenicity of N-nitrosomethylaniline in F344 rats.

N-Nitroso-N-methylaniline (NMA) and N-nitroso-N-methyl-4-fluoroaniline (p-F-NMA), both non-mutagenic in Salmonella typhimurium and N-nitroso-N-methyl-4-nitroaniline (p-NO2-NMA), a potent mutagen, were tested for carcinogenicity in F344 rats. NMA was shown to induce a high level of tumors in the upper gastrointestinal tract, particularly in the esophagus. Male rats treated with NMA died with tumors at a slightly higher rate than females, although the final tumor yield was the same. Most of the rats treated with p-F-NMA also developed tumors of the esophagus, but they died less rapidly than the NMA treated rats, indicating that p-F-NMA is a slightly weaker carcinogen than NMA. The powerful, directly acting mutagen, p-NO2-NMA did not appear to induce tumors at all since its tumor spectrum was essentially identical to that of the untreated control rats. Thus, the carcinogenic activities of NMA and its substituted analogs do not appear to correlate with bacterial mutagenesis assays. Additionally, NMA, p-F-NMA and N-nitroso-N-methyl-4-bromoaniline, the last a strong mutagen in S. typhimurium, were shown not to induce sister chromatid exchanges in CHO cells and in a clone of a CHO:liver cell hybrid which had previously been shown to be sensitive to chemical agents which require metabolic activation.