Activation of aminoimidazole carcinogens by nitrosation: mutagenicity and nucleotide adducts.

2-Amino-3-methylimidazo[4,5-f]quinoline (IQ) and 2-amino-3,8-dimethylimidazo[4,5-f]quinoxaline(MeIQx) are heterocyclic amines (HCAs) derived from high temperature cooking of meat and thought to cause colon cancer in humans. Reactive nitrogen oxygen species, which are mediators of the inflammatory response, can convert these amines to the corresponding N-nitrosamines, N-NO-IQ and N-NO-MeIQx. This study was designed to evaluate whether these N-nitrosamines are genotoxic and could be responsible, in part, for the high incidence of colon cancer in individuals with colitis.

Functional characterization of four allelic variants of human cytochrome P450 1A2.

Human cytochrome P450 1A2 catalyzes important reactions in xenobiotic metabolism, including the N-hydroxylation of carcinogenic aromatic amines. In 2001, Chevalier et al. reported four new P450 1A2 sequence variants in the human population.