TRANSFORMING ACTIVITY OF SELECTED POLYCYCLIC AROMATIC-HYDROCARBONS AND THEIR NITRO-DERIVATIVES IN BALB 3T3 A31-1-1 CELLS/

The transforming activities of four polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons a nd six of their nitro-derivatives were studied using BALB/3T3 clone A3 1-1-1 cells in the absence of exogenous metabolic activation. Each com pound was assayed two to four times to its maximal level of solubility . A transformation response was induced by 1-nitropyrene, 2-nitropyren e, 4-nitropyrene and benzo[a]pyrene in the BALB/3T3 mouse embryo cells . Pyrene and 7-nitrobenz[a]anthracene produced questionable responses, and benz[a]anthracene, chrysene, 6-nitrobenzo[a]pyrene and 6-nitrochr ysene produced negative responses. The capacity of the assay system to indicate tumorigenicity of the test compounds is discussed.