MUTAGENIC PROPERTIES OF A SERIES OF ALKYL HYDROPEROXIDES

Alkyl hydroperoxides can be found in remote atmospheres at concentrations approaching 1 part per billion. However, very little is known about the impact of these alkyl hydroperoxides on human health. It is conceivable, based on the chemical reactivity of hydroperoxides, that short-chain alkyl hydroperoxides can oxidize DNA bases, resulting in genetic damage. In this study we investigate the mutagenic properties of a series of short-chain alkyl hydroperoxides. Methyl, ethyl, n-propyl, and n-butyl hydroperoxide were synthesized using conventional methods and tested for direct-acting mutagenicity (i.e., without the addition of rat liver S9) in the Ames assay using Salmonella typhimurium strains TA98, TA100, and TA102. All four compounds are mutagenic in strain TA102 and weakly mutagenic in strain TA100. In strain TA100, methyl and n-butyl hydroperoxide are toxic at concentrations that are mutagenic for ethyl and n-propyl hydroperoxides. None of these compounds are mutagenic in strain TA98. These results suggest that alkyl hydroperoxides, formed as the result of atmospheric processes, are genotoxic in bacteria. The effect of these hydroperoxides on human health is difficult to assess because of their low concentrations in the environment and their unknown toxicological properties in humans.