Toxicologic evaluation of flavor ingredients added to cigarette tobacco: skin painting bioassay of cigarette smoke condensate in SENCAR mice.

Four comparative two-stage SENCAR mouse skin painting bioassays were conducted with cigarette smoke condensate (CSC) preparations to evaluate the effect of common American cigarette flavoring ingredients on tumor promotion. Each independent study employed a unique flavoring combination applied to tobacco at exaggerated levels, and in total resulted in an evaluation of 150 ingredients. Groups of 30-50 female SENCAR mice each were initiated topically with 50 microg of 7,12-dimethylbenz(a)anthracene (DMBA), and promoted thrice weekly for 26 weeks with either 10 or 20 mg of CSC from test cigarettes containing ingredient mixtures. For comparison, separate groups of mice received concurrent treatment with CSC from reference cigarettes prepared without added ingredients. Negative and positive controls were treated with acetone or 12-0-tetradecanoyl-phorbol-13-acetate (TPA) as a promoter, respectively. CSC-only groups served as promotion controls. Tumors developed in > 80% of the TPA-treated mice by study week 11, with a < 3% background tumor formation in the acetone treated controls at termination. Tumor incidence in CSC-only promotion control groups was < 20%, with no apparent difference between reference and test CSC groups. Approximately 70% of the DMBA-initiated mice promoted with 20 mg CSC developed tumors. Tumors first appeared around week 9, with about five tumors/tumor bearing animal. Tumor incidence, latency and multiplicity were CSC dose related, with a lower tumor incidence (approximately 50%), longer latency (12 weeks), and reduced tumor burden (four tumors/tumor bearing animal) at the 10 mg CSC dose level. While tumor incidence, latency and multiplicity data occasionally differed between test and comparative reference CSC groups, all effects appeared to be within normal variation for the model system. Furthermore, none of the changes appeared to be substantial enough to conclude that the tumor promotion capacity of CSC obtained from cigarettes containing tobacco with ingredients was discernibly different from the CSC obtained from reference cigarettes containing tobacco processed without ingredients.

13-week inhalation toxicity study of menthol cigarette smoke.

Menthol is a common pharmaceutical, food and tobacco flavouring ingredient used for its minty characteristics and cooling effects. A 13-wk comparative nose-only smoke inhalation toxicity study was conducted using an American-style, cellulose acetate-filtered, non-menthol reference cigarette and a similarly blended test cigarette containing 5000 ppm synthetic l-menthol tobacco. Male and female Fischer 344 rats were exposed for 1 hr/day, 5 days/wk for 13 wk at target mainstream smoke particulate concentrations of 200, 600 or 1200 mg/m3, while control rats were exposed to filtered air. Internal dose biomarkers (blood carboxyhaemoglobin, serum nicotine and serum continine) indicated equivalent exposures were obtained for the two cigarettes. Effects typically noted in rats exposed to high levels of mainstream tobacco smoke were similar for both cigarette types and included reduced body weights (males slightly more affected than females), increased heart-to-body weight ratios and lung weights, and histopathological changes in the respiratory tract. Rats exposed to reference cigarette smoke displayed a dose-related increase in nasal discharge that was not observed in menthol smoke-exposed rats. All smoke-related effects diminished significantly during a 6-wk non-exposure recovery period. The results of this 13-wk smoke inhalation study indicated that the addition of 5000 ppm menthol to tobacco had no substantial effect on the character or extent of the biological responses normally associated with inhalation of mainstream cigarette smoke in rats.

Codon pair utilization biases influence translational elongation step times.

Two independent assays capable of measuring the relative in vivo translational step times across a selected codon pair in a growing polypeptide in the bacterium Escherichia coli have been employed to demonstrate that codon pairs observed in protein coding sequences more frequently than predicted (over-represented codon pairs) are translated slower than pairs observed less frequently than expected (under-represented codon pairs). These results are consistent with the findings that translational step times are influenced by codon context and that these context effects are related to the compatabilities of adjacent tRNA isoacceptor molecules on the surface of a translating ribosome. These results also support our previous suggestion that the frequency of one codon next to another has co-evolved with the structure and abundance of tRNA isoacceptors in order to control the rates of translational step times without imposing additional constraints on amino acid sequences or protein structures.

An immunotoxicity assessment of food flavouring ingredients.

A rapid screening protocol incorporating key elements of the US National Toxicology Program's immunotoxicity tier testing strategy was used to evaluate the effects of 35 commonly used food flavouring ingredients on humoral and cell-mediated immune responses. The test compounds were administered intragastrically on a daily basis for 5 days at three dose levels to female CD-1 or B6C3F1 mice, 6-8 wk old. A host resistance assay (Listeria monocytogenes bacterial challenge) was conducted to assess cell-mediated immunity. Humoral immunity was measured by the antibody plaque-forming cell (PFC) response to sheep erythrocytes. Body weights, lymphoid organ weights and spleen cellularity were also measured. Cyclophosphamide (80 mg/kg) served as an immunosuppressive positive control agent. The results indicated that the majority of the flavouring ingredients tested did not modulate the cell-mediated or humoral immune response. However, at very high dose levels, two of the materials tested, peppermint oil and citral dimethyl acetal, did increase mortality rate and reduce survival time in the host resistance assay. Neither of these materials significantly altered the PFC response. This rapid, economical screening battery for potential immunotoxicants proved to be a useful means of evaluating a large number of structurally diverse compounds and mixtures to prioritize them for more definitive testing.

Evidence for genetic basis of seasonal differences in antibody formation between two mouse strains.

In order to confirm the presence of an acrophase difference based upon genotype in the seasonal expression of an immune competence end point, splenic plaque-forming cell (PFC) response to sheep red blood cells (SRBC), female B6C3F1 and CD1 mice were concurrently studied for PFC response during two studies performed in each season for 1 year. Mice were multiply housed, fed ad libitum, and standardized to light (06:00-18:00); dark (18:00-06:00). For each strain and study, subgroups were either naive (n = 10), received a vehicle (n = 10) or Cytoxan (n = 5). Challenge with SRBC occurred in early afternoon 4 days before harvesting of spleens and PFC assay. All other procedures were performed early in the daily light span. Analysis of variance and single cosinor analysis revealed a significant seasonal time effect for PFC in naive mice of both strains. Antibody formation was greatest in spring for CD1 mice and in summer for the B6C3F1 mice. These acrophases were consistent with earlier results for both strains and show the phenomena to be reproducible and genetically based.

Phenotypic instability of Salmonella strain YG1024 during mutagenicity assays of arylamine promutagens.

During spot tests using Salmonella TA98 derivatives (YG1021, YG1024) and TA100 derivatives (YG1026, YG1029), a unique response of O-acetyltransferase (OAT)-enhanced strains YG1024 and YG1029 to arylamines was observed. On plates containing rat-liver S9, these strains yielded revertant colonies induced in two separate concentric rings around the site of application, while the parent (TA98, TA100) and nitroreductase-enhanced strains (YG1021, YG1026) did not exhibit this response. The inner ring of revertants was accompanied by cytotoxicity and microcolony formation, with the outer ring in a region without background lawn toxicity. Addition of tetracycline to the top agar eliminated formation of the inner ring of YG1024 revertants in spot tests and reduced the revertant count in preincubation assays at cytotoxic dose levels of 2-aminoanthracene, 2-aminofluorene, 2-amino-6-methyldipyrido[1,2-a:3',2'-d]imidazole and 2-amino-3,4-dimethylimidazo[4,5-f]quinoline. Tetracycline sensitivity indicates that mutant colonies developing at high concentration/toxicity arose, in effect, from TA98 regenerated by functional loss of the tetracycline-resistance plasmid (pYG219) from YG1024. Mutant colonies found at low concentration/toxicity arose from normal plasmid-bearing YG1024. These results indicate the need to consider coincidental toxicity-induced instability in YG1024 during quantitative mutagenicity assays of arylamines and uncharacterized complex mixtures.

Developmental toxicity evaluation of inhaled citral in Sprague-Dawley rats.

Citral is a commonly used fragrance and flavour ingredient that has demonstrated a potential for teratogenicity in chick embryo screening studies. To investigate potential mammalian developmental toxicity, pregnant Sprague-Dawley rats were exposed to citral by inhalation for 6 hr/day on gestation days 6-15 at mean concentrations of 0, 10 or 34 ppm as vapour, or 68 ppm as an aerosol/vapour mixture. Dams were killed on gestation day 20 and the foetuses were removed and evaluated for gross, visceral and skeletal malformations. Exposure to 68 ppm was maternally toxic, with reduced body-weight gains, ocular opacity, breathing difficulty, nasal discharge and salivation noted in the dams. No maternal toxicity was seen at the lower vapour exposure levels. The number of corpora lutea, implantations, resorptions, foetal viability, litter size, and sex ratio were not adversely affected by citral at any exposure level tested, and no exposure-related malformations were observed. At a maternally toxic exposure level, a slight reduction in mean foetal body weight and a slight increase in the incidence of hypoplastic bones were noted. Results of this study indicate that citral does not produce developmental toxicity in the rat when administered by inhalation at concentrations up to a maternally toxic exposure level.

The yeast RNA polymerase I promoter: ribosomal DNA sequences involved in transcription initiation and complex formation in vitro.

Using an in vitro transcription system for Saccharomyces cerevisiae RNA polymerase I, we have analyzed Pol I promoter deletion mutants and mapped the boundaries of the promoter between positions -155 and +27. The 5'-boundary of the minimal core promoter capable of transcription initiation, however, was found to lie between -38 and -26. The 3'-deletion extending to -2 and -5 still allowed some transcription, suggesting that the positioning of Pol I is directed by upstream sequences. The results of in vitro analysis of linker scanning mutants (LSMs) combined with the deletion analysis showed that the promoter consists of three domains: two essential core domains (I: -28 to +8 and II: -76 to -51) and a transcription modulating upstream domain (III: -146 to -91). These results are in general agreement with those obtained in vivo (1). Using a template competition assay we also analyzed these mutant promoters for their ability to form a stable preinitiation complex. We found that the ability of 5'-deletion mutants to sequester an essential factor(s) correlates with their transcriptional activity. In contrast, several 3'-deletions and some LSMs in domain I and II decrease transcription activity greatly without significantly decreasing competition ability. The results indicate that the stimulatory function of domain III is achieved through its interaction with an essential transcription factor(s), although the other domains also participate in this interaction, perhaps directly or through another protein factor.

Reproducibility of seasonal effects in antibody formation and host resistance in the outbred mouse.

The purpose of this study was to assess the reproducibility of any seasonal effects in the outbred CD1 mouse of antibody production to sheep red blood cells (SRBCs) and host resistance to the bacterium Listeria monocytogenes. A marked seasonal effect on antibody production was seen when 5- to 6-week-old female CD1 mice were studied on a weekly basis for a period of 2 years. Maintained on a 12:12 h light:dark schedule, animals were held for 12 days prior to experiment to insure physical condition and acclimatization to the lighting regimen. Beginning at 4 h after lights on (HALO) for day 1 and 2 HALO thereafter, groups of mice were (a) not treated, (b) administered a vehicle (corn oil, 1% methylcellulose, or distilled water) by oral gavage for 5 days, or (c) not treated, but given an intraperitoneal injection of cyclophosphamide 24 h prior to assay. On the fifth day, mice were injected with SRBCs intravenously. Four days later, antibody formation against SRBCs was measured using spleen cells. Circannual and seasonal rhythms were displayed by each group of animals, with greatest antibody production, indicated by the number of plaque-forming cells (PFCs)/million viable cells, in the Spring (range of double amplitude = 36-108%). The timing of these rhythms was reproducible from one year to the next. In contrast, the magnitude of the response in year 1 was significantly different from year 2 for animals given vehicle or not treated. Cyclophosphamide-treated mice had consistently low numbers of plaque-forming cells. Host resistance was studied in separate mice treated with vehicles at the same time as the antibody assay. On the third day of dosing, mice were injected intravenously with Listeria monocytogenes (LM) and monitored for death for 10 days. When analyzed by Kruskal-Wallis life table analysis, there was no overall effect of vehicle on survival for 1987 but there was an effect for 1988 and when data from both years were combined. Distilled water-treated mice had lower survival rates than the other two vehicles. Mice treated with distilled water displayed a circannual rhythm for survival for 1988 and for both years combined, in contrast to the other two vehicles. When each vehicle was analyzed separately for seasonal effect, a significant effect of season occurred for corn oil- and distilled water-treated animals. The greatest survival rate and longest survival time generally occurred in the months between July and December.

Valyl-tRNA synthetase gene of Escherichia coli K12. Molecular genetic characterization.

We report the subcloning and characterization of the molecular elements necessary for the expression of the Escherichia coli valS gene which encodes the enzyme valyl-tRNA synthetase (EC 6.1.1.9). The valS gene was subcloned from the Clarke-Carbon plasmid pLC26-22 by genetic complementation of the valS temperature-sensitive mutant strain, AB4141. The protein-coding region of the valS structural gene was determined by in vitro DNA directed coupled transcription-translation assays. Assays of cellular extracts of cells transformed with a plasmid containing a full length copy of the valS gene enhanced in vivo valyl-tRNA synthetase-specific activity 12-fold. The DNA sequences of the 5'- and 3'-terminal regions of the valS structural gene are presented. The transcription initiation sites of the valS gene were determined, in vivo and in vitro, by S1 nuclease protection studies, primer-extension analysis and both alpha-32P labeled and gamma-32P-end-labeled in vitro transcription assays. In vivo, valS transcription initiates from tandem overlapping promoters separated by seven nucleotides. In vitro, only the upstream promoter is active. The presence of several regions of hyphenated dyad symmetry overlapping the tandem promoter region are noted. The valS translational start codon (AUG) is located 93 base pairs downstream from the major transcription initiation site. The valS transcriptional unit encodes only the valyl-tRNA synthetase gene since the 3' terminus of the amino acid-coding region of this gene is followed closely (26 base pairs) by an efficient rho-independent transcription termination site.

Valyl-tRNA synthetase gene of Escherichia coli K12. Primary structure and homology within a family of aminoacyl-TRNA synthetases.

The DNA nucleotide sequence of the valS gene encoding valyl-tRNA synthetase of Escherichia coli has been determined. The deduced primary structure of valyl-tRNA synthetase was compared to the primary sequences of the known aminoacyl-tRNA synthetases of yeast and bacteria. Significant homology was detected between valyl-tRNA synthetase of E. coli and other known branched-chain aminoacyl-tRNA synthetases. In pairwise comparisons the highest level of homology was detected between the homologous valyl-tRNA synthetases of yeast and E. coli, with an observed 41% direct identity overall. Comparisons between the valyl- and isoleucyl-tRNA synthetases of E. coli yielded the highest level of homology detected between heterologous enzymes (19.2% direct identity overall). An alignment is presented between the three branched-chain aminoacyl-tRNA synthetases (valyl- and isoleucyl-tRNA synthetases of E. coli and yeast mitochondrial leucyl-tRNA synthetase) illustrating the close relatedness of these enzymes. These results give credence to the supposition that the branched-chain aminoacyl-tRNA synthetases along with methionyl-tRNA synthetase form a family of genes within the aminoacyl-tRNA synthetases that evolved from a common ancestral progenitor gene.

Influence of surface charge and dissolution on the selective phagocytosis of potentially carcinogenic particulate metal compounds.

Substantial evidence has accumulated which documents the active endocytosis by cells of particulate nickel compounds having potent carcinogenic and transforming capacity; compounds less potent in these respects exhibit a reduced tendency to be phagocytized by cultured fibroblasts. The surface charges (zeta potentials) of a number of particulate nickel compounds were measured in an attempt to identify the determinants of their variable degrees of cellular uptake. The carcinogenic particulates, crystalline NiS, Ni3S2, and NiO, exhibit strongly negative zeta potentials in distilled water and enter cells readily, while noncarcinogenic amorphous NiS, which is phagocytized to a lesser degree, is slightly positive in surface charge under similar conditions. The greater dissolution rate of amorphous NiS in comparison to crystalline NiS may contribute to its reduced uptake by cells by causing substantial alteration of the particle surface and/or by the generation of particle dissolution products at its site of cellular interaction which inhibit particle uptake. Addition of ionic nickel was found to be inhibitory toward the phagocytosis process in general, although the potency of ionic nickel in inhibiting particle uptake is not sufficiently high to attribute the selectivity of uptake of nickel-containing particulates solely to this inhibitory effect. Freshly suspended amorphous NiS particles were phagocytized more than particles aged in either H2O or culture medium for 1 to 7 days. This reduced tendency of the aged amorphous NiS particles to be phagocytized remained following removal of potential inhibitory dissolution products. Binding of amorphous NiS to DEAE paper, which represented an alternate method to determine the surface charge, was decreased by aging in H2O or culture medium, suggesting that a loss of negative surface charge during this aging process may have been associated with decreased uptake. These findings lend support to the hypothesis that surface charge may play a role in the phagocytosis of potentially carcinogenic nickel sulfide particles.

Soluble and insoluble nickel compounds induce DNA repair synthesis in cultured mammalian cells.

The induction of DNA repair was investigated in cultured Syrian hamster embryo (SHE) cells and Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells by cesium chloride equilibrium gradient sedimentation techniques following exposure to NiCl2, amorphous NiS, crystalline NiS and crystalline Ni3S2. Significant repair was induced in CHO cells by 1 microgram/ml of crystalline NiS following 24 h of treatment while 5 micrograms/ml caused more than twice the repair activity. In contrast amorphous NiS at 10 micrograms/ml for 24 h induced little repair in these cells. Similarly amorphous NiS did not induce repair at 5-10 micrograms/ml for 24 h in SHO cells while crystalline Ni3S2, and NiCl2 caused substantial induction of DNA repair synthesis at 10 micrograms/ml or 100 microM, respectively. These results demonstrate that nickel compounds which are potent transforming agents and induce damage to DNA also result in the induction of DNA repair. Repair synthesis was detected at concentrations of metal compounds which result in no detectable damage to DNA.

Extracellular requirements for the endocytosis of carcinogenic crystalline nickel sulfide particles by facultative phagocytes.

Various culture medium components were examined for their effect upon the phagocytosis of carcinogenic crystalline and non-carcinogenic amorphous NiS by cultured fibroblastic cells using both a visual and radioactive assay for phagocytosis. Crystalline NiS was phagocytosed by cells in a simple salts/glucose maintenance medium to an extent similar to that observed in complex culture medium fortified with 10% fetal bovine serum (FBS), suggesting that serum proteins and other components in complex culture medium exert little influence upon the uptake of these heavy metal particles. Phagocytosis of crystalline NiS was shown to be highly dependent upon Ca2+ since omission of Ca2+ from the salts/glucose medium substantially reduced phagocytosis, while readdition of Ca2+ stimulated uptake in a concentration-dependent manner. The uptake of the NiS particles was inhibited by trifluoperazine, a calmodulin antagonist, implicating intracellular Ca2+ in this phagocytosis process. Since the opposite surface charge of crystalline and amorphous NiS has been related to their different phagocytic uptake by cells whose primary function is not phagocytosis (facultative phagocytes), these results show that the culture medium components do not modify the surface charge of these particles in a way that significantly influences their uptake.

Selective phagocytosis of crystalline metal sulfide particles and DNA strand breaks as a mechanism for the induction of cellular transformation.

Crystalline NiS, CuS, CoS2, and CdS particles were actively phagocytosed by cells and potently induced morphological transformation of Syrian hamster embryo cells in a concentration-dependent fashion. In contrast, the respective amorphous metal sulfide particles (amorphous NiS, CuS, CoS, and CdS) were not as actively phagocytosed by cultured cells and, in comparison to the crystalline form of these compounds, induced considerably less morphological transformation at both cytotoxic and noncytotoxic exposure levels. Chemical reduction of positively charged amorphous NiS with LiAlH4 resulted in active phagocytosis of these particles which was also associated with enhancement of cellular transformation. Crystalline but not amorphous NiS caused considerable strand breaks in the DNA of Chinese hamster ovary cells following 2 to 3 hr exposure at 10 micrograms/ml as determined by alkaline sucrose gradient techniques with subsequent determination of DNA molecular weight. Phagocytized inert particles such as latex beads did not induce transformation or DNA damage, suggesting that genotoxic dissolution products such as Ni2+ rather than the phagocytized particles are responsible for the observed DNA damage and cellular transformation. NiCl2 was about one-third to one-half as potent in inducing cellular transformation compared to crystalline NiS on a weight basis. These results correlate the selective phagocytosis of crystalline metal sulfides to their more potent activity in the induction of cellular transformation.

The phagocytosis and transforming activity of crystalline metal sulfide particles are related to their negative surface charge.

Crystalline nickel sulfide (alpha NiS) and cobalt sulfide (CoS2) particles can cause greater cell transformation and cellular toxicity than the respective amorphous metal sulfide particles. Cultured mammalian cells phagocytose the crystalline metal sulfide particles more readily than the amorphous ones. In the case of the nickel sulfides, the crystalline metal sulfide particles had negatively charged surfaces (Zeta potential: -27.012 mV) in contrast to the amorphous particles, which were positively charge (Zeta potential: +9.174 mV). X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy analysis of amorphous and crystalline NiS particles revealed that the outermost surface (1-4 nm) of the two particles had striking differences in Ni/S ratios and in their sulfur oxidation states. Rendering particles' surfaces more negative by reduction with lithium aluminum hydride enhanced their phagocytosis, and in the case of amorphous NiS chemical reduction resulted in an incidence of morphological transformation of Syrian hamster embryo cells comparable to that observed with untreated crystalline alpha NiS.

Surface reduction of amorphous NiS particles potentiates their phagocytosis and subsequent induction of morphological transformation in Syrian hamster embryo cells.

The incidence of morphological transformation following exposure of Syrian hamster embryo (SHE) cells to crystalline alphaNiS particles was considerably greater than that following a similar exposure to amorphous NiS particles. These differences in potency were attributable to the selective phagocytosis of crystalline alphaNiS particles into cells, since untreated amorphous NiS particles were not readily taken up. Chemical reduction of the amorphous NiS particles' surface with LiAlH4 resulted in an increase both in their phagocytic uptake by Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells and in their ability to induce transformation in SHE cells. The phagocytosis and transforming activity of crystalline alphaNiS particles was also enhanced by LiAlH4 reduction. These results are consistent with previous observations showing that untreated crystalline NiS particles have a negative surface charge while amorphous NiS particles possess positively charged surfaces. These findings support the general hypothesis that the transforming activity of particulate metal compounds is proportional to their phagocytic uptake. Specifically, these observations show that the entry of metal sulfide particles into cells is related to their surface properties and, in particular, to the degree of negative charge on the surface microenvironment.