Chromosomal damages by ethanol and acetaldehyde in Saccharomyces cerevisiae as studied by pulsed field gel electrophoresis.

We report on the effect of ethanol and acetaldehyde on yeast chromosomal DNA and on isolated DNA. Ethanol induced DNA single-strand breaks in repair deficient but not in repair proficient Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Acetaldehyde has a deleterious effect on chromosomal DNA in cells as well as on isolated DNA. The results presented support earlier data to show that ethanol is mutagenic via its first metabolite, acetaldehyde.