Alkylating potential of styrene oxide: reactions and factors involved in the alkylation process.

The chemical reactivity of styrene-7,8-oxide (SO), an alkylating agent with high affinity for the guanine­N7 position and a probable carcinogen for humans, with 4-(p-nitrobenzyl)pyridine (NBP), a trap for alkylating agents with nucleophilic characteristics similar to those of DNA bases, was investigated kinetically in water/dioxane media. UV­vis spectrophotometry and ultrafast liquid chromatography were used to monitor the reactions involved. It was found that in the alkylation process four reactions occur simultaneously: (a) the formation of a ß-NBP­SO adduct through an SN2 mechanism; (b) the acid-catalyzed formation of the stable α-NBP­SO adduct through an SN2' mechanism; (c) the base-catalyzed hydrolysis of the ß-adduct, and (d) the acid-catalyzed hydrolysis of SO. At 37.5 °C and pH = 7.0 (in 7:3 water/dioxane medium), the values of the respective reaction rate constants were as follows: kalkß = (2.1 ± 0.3) × 10­4 M­1 s­1, kalkα = (1.0 ± 0.1) × 10­4 M­1 s­1, khydAD = (3.06 ± 0.09) × 10­6 s­1, and khyd = (4.2 ± 0.9) × 10­6 s­1. These values show that, in order to determine the alkylating potential of SO, none of the four reactions involved can be neglected. Temperature and pH were found to exert a strong influence on the values of some parameters that may be useful to investigate possible chemicobiological correlations (e.g., in the pH 5.81­7.69 range, the fraction of total adducts formed increased from 24% to 90% of the initial SO, whereas the adduct lifetime of the unstable ß-adduct, which gives an idea of the permanence of the adduct over time, decreased from 32358 to 13313 min). A consequence of these results is that the conclusions drawn in studies addressing alkylation reactions at temperatures and/or pH far from those of biological conditions should be considered with some reserve.

Kinetic study on the reaction of sodium nitrite with neurotransmitters secreted in the stomach.

Nitroso-compounds are potentially mutagenic and carcinogenic compounds due to their ability to alkylate DNA bases. One of the most common sources of human exposure to nitroso-compounds is their formation in the acidic environment of the stomach by the reaction between electron-rich molecules present in the lumen and sodium nitrite ingested in the diet. To date, the formation of nitroso-compounds by the reaction of nitrite with food components has been investigated in depth, but little attention has been paid to substances secreted in the stomach, such as dopamine or serotonin, whose reaction products with nitrite have proven mutagenic properties. In this article, we present a kinetic study with UV-visible spectroscopy of the nitrosation reactions of both molecules, as well as of L-tyrosine, the amino-acid precursor of dopamine. We determined the kinetic parameters and reaction mechanisms for the reactions, studying the influence of the reactants concentration, pH, temperature, and ionic strength on the reaction rate. In all cases, the favoured reaction product was a stable nitroso-compound. Serotonin, the molecule whose product was the most mutagenic, underwent two consecutive nitrosation reactions. These findings suggest that additional biological research is needed to understand how this reaction alters the function of these neurotransmitters as well as the potentially toxic effects they may have once nitrosated.

Connecting the chemical and biological reactivity of epoxides.

The chemical reactivity of the mutagenic epoxides (EP) propylene oxide (PO), 1,2-epoxybutane (1,2-EB), and cis- and trans-2,3-epoxybutane (cis- and trans-2,3-EB) with 4-(p-nitrobenzyl)pyridine (NBP), a bionucleophile model for S(N)2 alkylating agents with high affinity for the guanine-N7 position, was investigated kinetically. It was found that three reactions are involved simultaneously: the alkylation reaction of NBP by EP, which yields the corresponding NBP-EP adducts through an S(N)2 mechanism, and EP and NBP-EP hydrolysis reactions. PO and 1,2-EB were seen to exhibit a higher alkylating potential than cis- and trans-2,3-EB. From a study of the correlations between the chemical reactivity (kinetic parameters) and the biological effectiveness of oxiranes, the following conclusions can be drawn: (i) the hydrolysis reactions of epoxides must be taken into account to understand their bioactivity. (ii) The fraction (f) of the alkylating oxirane that forms the adduct and the adduct life (AL) permit the potential of epoxides as bioactive molecules to be rationalized even semiquantitatively; and (iii) alkylation of DNA by epoxides and the O(6)-/N7-guanine adduct ratio are directly related to their mutagenicity in vitro.

Reactivity of the mutagen 1,4-dinitro-2-methylpyrrole as an alkylating agent.

The formation of chemical species with DNA-damaging and mutagenic activity for bacterial test systems was detected in sorbic acid-nitrite mixtures. 1,4-Dinitro-2-methylpyrrole (NMP), one the main products resulting from the reaction between sorbic acid and nitrite, has mutagenic properties, and here its alkylating capacity was investigated. The conclusions drawn are as follows: (i) In aqueous medium, after the addition of a hydroxide ion and the subsequent loss of nitrite, NMP affords 5-methyl-3-nitro-1H-pyrrol-2-ol. This species is in equilibrium with 5-methyl-3-nitro-1H-pyrrol-2(5H)-one, the effective alkylating agent responsible for the genotoxic capacity of NMP; (ii) 5-methyl-3-nitro-1H-pyrrol-2(5H)-one alkylates 4-(p-nitrobenzyl)pyridine (NBP), a molecule with nucleophilic characteristics similar to those of DNA bases, forming an adduct (AD; epsilon = 1.14 x 10(4) M(-1) cm(-1)); (iii) The calculated energy barrier for the alkylation of NBP for NMP and the value of the fraction of alkylating agent forming the adduct are consistent with the observed mutagenicity of NMP; (iv) The reactivity of NMP can be explained in terms of the instability of the N-NO(2) bond as well as the effect of this group on aromaticity.

Sorbate-nitrite interactions: acetonitrile oxide as an alkylating agent.

Because chemical species with DNA-damaging and mutagenic activity are formed in sorbate-nitrite mixtures and because sorbic acid sometimes coexists with nitrite occurring naturally or incorporated as a food additive, the study of sorbate-nitrite interactions is important. Here, the alkylating potential of the products resulting from such interactions was investigated. Drawn were the following conclusions: (i) Acetonitrile oxide (ACNO) is the compound responsible for the alkylating capacity of sorbate-nitrite mixtures; (ii) ACNO alkylates 4-(p-nitrobenzyl)pyridine (NBP), a trap for alkylating agents with nucleophilic characteristics similar to those of DNA bases, forming an adduct (AD; epsilon = 1.4 x 10(4) M(-1) cm(-1); lambda = 519 nm); (iii) the NBP alkylation reaction complies with the rate equation, r = d[AD]/dt = k(alk)(ACNO)[ACNO][NBP]-k(hyd)(AD)[AD], k(alk)(ACNO) being the NBP alkylation rate constant for ACNO and k(hyd)(AD) the rate constant for the adduct hydrolysis reaction; (iv) the small fraction of ACNO forming the adduct with NBP, as well as the small magnitude of the quotient (k(alk) (ACNO)/k(hyd)(ACNO)) as compared with those reported for other alkylating agents, such as some lactones and N-alkyl-N-nitrosoureas, reveals the ACNO effective alkylating capacity to be less significant; (v) the low value of the NBP-ACNO adduct life (defined as the total amount of adduct present along the progression of the NBP alkylation per unit of alkylating agent concentration) points to the high instability of this adduct; and (vi) the obtained results are in accordance with the low carcinogenicity of ACNO.

Reactivity of some products formed by the reaction of sorbic acid with sodium nitrite: decomposition of 1,4-dinitro-2-methylpyrrole and ethylnitrolic acid.

Sorbic acid reacts with nitrite to yield mutagenic products such as 1,4-dinitro-2-methylpyrrole (NMP) and ethylnitrolic acid (ENA). In order to know the stability of these compounds, a kinetic study of their decomposition reactions was performed in the 6.0-9.5 pH range. The conclusions drawn are as follows: (i) The decomposition of NMP occurs through a nucleophilic attack by OH- ions, with the rate equation as follows: r = k(dec)NMP[OH-][NMP] with k(dec)NMP (37.5 degrees C) = 42 +/- 1 M(-1) s(-1). (ii) The rate law for the decomposition of ENA is as follows: r = k(dec)ENA[ENA]K(a)/(K(a) + [H+]), with K(a) being the ENA dissociation constant and k(dec)ENA (37.5 degrees C) = (7.11 +/- 0.04) x 10(-5) s(-1). (iii) The activation energies for NMP and ENA decomposition reactions are, respectively, E(a) = 94 +/- 3 and 94 +/- 1 kJ mol(-1). (iv) The observed values for the decomposition rate constants of NMP and ENA in the pH range of the stomach lining cells, into which these species can diffuse, are so slow that they could be the slow determining step of the alkylation mechanisms by some of the products resulting from NMP and ENA decomposition. Thus, the current kinetic results are consistent with the low mutagenicity of these species.