Genotoxicity of structurally related copper and zinc containing Schiff base complexes.

The utilization of Schiff bases in the industrial and pharmaceutical fields has led to an increase in their syntheses and evaluation of their biological activities. In this study, we described the synthesis and genotoxicity of two Schiff bases that share common platform in their construction, namely, naphthalene, and are complexed to either Cu(II) or Zn(II). The genotoxicity of these complexes was evaluated in cultured lymphocytes using sister chromatid exchanges (SCEs) and chromosomal aberrations (CAs), and in rats using the urine 8-OH-2-deoxyguanosine (8-OH-dG) assay.