Zc. Heng et al., IN-VITRO STUDIES ON THE GENOTOXICITY OF 2,4-DICHLORO-6-NITROPHENOL AMMONIUM (DCNPA) AND ITS MAJOR METABOLITE, Mutation research. Genetic toxicology testing, 368(2), 1996, pp. 149-155
2,4-dichloro-6-nitrophenol ammonium (DCNPA) is used as a herbicide. Ho
wever, information on the potential health hazards of DCNPA is limited
. In a previous study, we found that DCNPA is genotoxic to Bacillus su
btilis and yeast. Further studies were performed to determine whether
DCNPA and its major metabolite, 2,4-dichloro-6-aminophenol (DCAP), can
induce reverse mutations in Salmonella, gene mutations at the HPRT lo
cus, sister chromatid exchanges (SCEs) and micronuclei (MN) in V79 cel
ls. Results show that DCNPA does not produce a positive response for a
ny endpoint at concentrations tested. However, treatment of V79 cultur
es with DCAP caused a significant increase in SCEs and MN in a concent
ration-dependent manner. These results indicate that DCAP damages DNA
and causes chromosomal aberrations in V79 cells. Therefore, DCNPA coul
d pose potential health hazards to populations exposed to this herbici
de.