Analysis of DNA adduct, S-[2-(N7-guanyl)ethyl]glutathione, by liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry and liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry

Investigation of potential early key events and mode of action for 1,2-dichloroethane-induced mammary tumors in female rats

1,2-dichloroethane (DCE or EDC) is a chlorinated hydrocarbon used as a chemical intermediate, including in the synthesis of polyvinyl chloride. Although DCE has induced tumors in both rats and mice, the overall weight-of-evidence suggests a lack of in vivo mutagenicity. The present study was conducted to explore a potential mode of action further for tumor formation in rat mammary tissue. Fischer 344 rats were exposed to target concentrations of 0 or 200 ppm of DCE vapors (6 hours/day, 7 days/week) for at least 28 days; 200 ppm represents a concentration of ~20% higher than that reported to induce mammary tumors. Endpoints examined included DNA damage (via Comet assay), glutathione (reduced, oxidized and conjugated), tissue DNA adducts, cell proliferation and serum prolactin levels. Exposure to DCE did not alter serum prolactin levels with consistent estrous stage, did not cause cell proliferation in mammary epithelial cells, nor result in histopathological alterations in the mammary gland. DNA adducts were identified, including the N⁷ -guanylethyl glutathione adduct, with higher adduct levels measured in liver (nontumorigenic target) compared with mammary tissue isolated from the same rats; no known mutagenic adducts were identified. DCE did not increase the Comet assay response in mammary epithelial cells, whereas DNA damage in the positive control (N-nitroso-N-methylurea) was significantly increased. Although the result of this study did not identify a specific mode of action for DCE-induced mammary tumors in rats, the lack of any exposure-related genotoxic responses further contributes to the weight-of-evidence suggesting that DCE is a nongenotoxic carcinogen.

Mass spectrometry for the assessment of the occurrence and biological consequences of DNA adducts

Exogenous and endogenous sources of chemical species can react, directly or after metabolic activation, with DNA to yield DNA adducts. If not repaired, DNA adducts may compromise cellular functions by blocking DNA replication and/or inducing mutations. Unambiguous identification of the structures and accurate measurements of the levels of DNA adducts in cellular and tissue DNA constitute the first and important step towards understanding the biological consequences of these adducts. The advances in mass spectrometry (MS) instrumentation in the past 2-3 decades have rendered MS an important tool for structure elucidation, quantification, and revelation of the biological consequences of DNA adducts. In this review, we summarized the development of MS techniques on these fronts for DNA adduct analysis. We placed our emphasis of discussion on sample preparation, the combination of MS with gas chromatography- or liquid chromatography (LC)-based separation techniques for the quantitative measurement of DNA adducts, and the use of LC-MS along with molecular biology tools for understanding the human health consequences of DNA adducts. The applications of mass spectrometry-based DNA adduct analysis for predicting the therapeutic outcome of anti-cancer agents, for monitoring the human exposure to endogenous and environmental genotoxic agents, and for DNA repair studies were also discussed.

High-throughput metabolic toxicity screening using magnetic biocolloid reactors and LC-MS/MS

An inexpensive, high-throughput genotoxicity screening method was developed by using magnetic particles coated with cytosol/microsome/DNA films as biocolloid reactors in a 96-well plate format coupled with liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry. Incorporation of both microsomal and cytosolic enzymes in the films provides a broad spectrum of metabolic enzymes representing a range of metabolic pathways for bioactivation of chemicals. Reactive metabolites generated via this process are trapped by covalently binding to DNA in the film. The DNA is then hydrolyzed and nucleobase adducts are collected using filters in the bottom for the 96-well plate of analysis by capillary liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). The magnetic particles facilitate simple and rapid sample preparation and workup. Major DNA adducts from ethylene dibromide, N-acetyl-2-aminofluorene and styrene were identified in proof-of-concept studies. Relative formation rates of DNA adducts correlated well with rodent genotoxicity metric TD(50) for the three compounds. This method has the potential for high-throughput genotoxicity screening, providing chemical structure information that is complementary to toxicity bioassays.

Dose-response relationship, kinetics of formation, and persistence of S-[2-(N7-guanyl)-ethyl]glutathione-DNA adduct in livers of channel catfish (Ictalurus punctatus) exposed in vivo to ethylene dichloride

Formation of DNA adducts by reactive chemicals or their metabolites are often a precursor of mutagenesis and other adverse effects. Studies in juvenile channel catfish (Ictalurus punctatus) were conducted to determine the dose-response, kinetics of formation, and persistence of S-[2-(N7-guanyl)ethyl]glutathione hepatic-DNA adducts following a 4-h in vivo aqueous exposure to ethylene dichloride (EDC) at several dose levels. S-[2-(N7-guanyl)ethyl] glutathione adducts were detectable in liver tissue after 2 h of exposure and were still detectable three weeks after a single pulse exposure (detection limit=approximately 10 fmol, approximately 1 DNA adduct in 10(7) bases). Pretreatment of catfish with the glutathione-depleting agent diethylmaleate significantly reduced the level of tissue glutathione levels and, as a result, DNA adducts were not detected in pretreated fish. Catfish may serve as a useful sentinel species for detecting DNA-reactive chemicals in aquatic systems.

Screening for reactive metabolites using electro-optical arrays featuring human liver cytosol and microsomal enzyme sources and DNA

We demonstrate for the first time the combination of human liver cytosol and microsomal enzyme sources into an electro-optical array to screen for reactive metabolites produced in multi-enzyme metabolic processes.

Analysis of DNA adducts formed in vivo in rats and mice from 1,2-dibromoethane, 1,2-dichloroethane, dibromomethane, and dichloromethane using HPLC/accelerator mass spectrometry and relevance to risk estimates

Dihaloalkanes are of toxicological interest because of their high-volume use in industry and their abilities to cause tumors in rodents, particularly dichloromethane and 1,2-dichloroethane. The brominated analogues are not used as extensively but are known to produce more toxicity in some systems. Rats and mice were treated i.p. with (14)C-dichloromethane, -dibromomethane, -1,2-dichloroethane, or -1,2-dibromoethane [5 mg (kg body weight)(-1)], and livers and kidneys were collected to rapidly isolate DNA. The DNA was digested using a procedure designed to minimize processing time, because some of the potential dihalomethane-derived DNA-glutathione (GSH) adducts are known to be unstable, and the HPLC fractions corresponding to major adduct standards were separated and analyzed for (14)C using accelerator mass spectrometry. The level of liver or kidney S-[2-(N(7)-guanyl)ethyl]GSH in rats treated with 1,2-dibromoethane was approximately 1 adduct/10(5) DNA bases; in male or female mice, the level was approximately one-half of this. The levels of 1,2-dichloroethane adducts were 10-50-fold lower. None of four known (in vitro) GSH-DNA adducts was detected at a level of >2/10(8) DNA bases from dibromomethane or dichloromethane. These results provide parameters for risk assessment of these compounds: DNA binding occurs with 1,2-dichloroethane but is considerably less than from 1,2-dibromoethane in vivo, and low exposure to dihalomethanes does not produce appreciable DNA adduct levels in rat or mouse liver and kidney of the doses used. The results may be used to address issues in human risk assessment.

Characterization of DNA adducts from lung tissue of asphalt fume-exposed mice by nanoflow liquid chromatography quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry

A bioanalytical method based on nanoflow liquid chromatography coupled to a hybrid quadrupole orthogonal acceleration time-of-flight mass spectrometry was developed to characterize selected polyaromatic hydrocarbon (PAH)-DNA adducts. The collision-induced dissociation of analytes results in characteristic fragmentation patterns that can be utilized to identify the DNA adducts. In the experiment, 32 B6C3F1 mice were exposed daily (4h/day) to asphalt fume in a whole-body inhalation chamber for 10 days; 16 nonexposed mice served as controls. The asphalt fume was generated at 180 degrees C and the concentrations of PAHs in the animal exposure chamber ranged from 152 to 198 mg/m3. The DNA adducts N2-deoxyguanosine-benzo(a)pyrene-7,8-dihydrodiol-9,10-epoxide (N2-dG-BPDE); N6-deoxyadenosine-benzo(a)pyrene-7,8-dihydrodiol-9,10-epoxide (N6-dA-BPDE), and N4-deoxycytidine-benzo(a)pyrene-7,8-dihydrodiol-9,10-epoxide (N4-dC-BPDE) were identified. The concentrations of N2-dG-BPDE, N6-dA-BPDE, and N4-dC-BPDE adducts were determined to be 1.17, 0.97, and 0.68 pmol/mg DNA, respectively, in the lung tissue of exposed mice using the nanoflow technique. The total DNA adducts in exposed lung tissue was determined to be 8.35 pmol/mg DNA by 32P-postlabeling assay. In total, the results indicated that PAH DNA adducts were significantly elevated (p < 0.001) in the lung tissue of asphalt-fume-exposed mice relative to tissue from control animals.

Development of an isotope dilution liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry detection method for DNA adducts of selected aromatic amines

Polycyclic aromatic amines (arylamines) are a class of chemical carcinogens that are prevalent in environmental and industrial settings. They are metabolically activated to covalently bond to DNA, forming mutagenic adducts. In order to study the mechanisms of their toxicity, sensitive and selective quantitative LC/MS/MS detection methods were developed to measure the N-(adenin-8-yl)-benzidine adduct and N-(adenin-8-yl)-2-aminofluorene in total DNA extract samples. A novel synthetic method using a palladium catalyst was previously developed to prepare authentic and deuterated arylamine-adenine adducts to serve as standards. These standards were then used to develop an HPLC electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry, isotope dilution method. Sample detection limits in DNA samples were 22 pg on-column and 51 pg on-column for the N-(adenin-8-yl)-benzidine- and N-(adenin-8-yl)-2-aminofluorene-adenine adducts, respectively. This method has applications for the study of DNA adduct formation as a biological marker of exposure to carcinogens and for environmental and workplace monitoring of these aromatic amines.

Detection of DNA adducts of benzo[a]pyrene using immunoelectrophoresis with laser-induced fluorescence. Analysis of A549 cells

Detection of benzo[a]pyrene diol epoxide (BPDE)-damaged DNA in a human lung carcinoma cell line (A549) has been performed using free zone affinity capillary electrophoresis with laser-induced fluorescence (LIF). Using BPDE as a model carcinogenic compound, the speed, sensitivity and specificity of this technique was demonstrated. Under free zone conditions, an antibody bound adduct was baseline-resolved from an unbound adduct in less than 2 min. The efficiencies of separation were in excess of 6 x 10(5) and 1 x 10(6) plates per meter for the antibody-bound and unbound adducts, respectively. Separation using a low ionic strength buffer permitted the use of a high electric field (830 V/cm) without the loss of resolving power. Using LIF detection, a concentration detection limit of roughly 3 x 10(-10) M was achieved for a 90-mer oligonuleotide containing a single BDPE. The use of formamide in the incubation buffer to enhance denaturing of DNA did not affect the stability of the complex between the antibody and the adducts. Using a fluorescently labeled BPDE-modified DNA adduct probe, a competitive assay was established to determine the levels of BPDE-DNA adducts in A549 cells.

Analysis of DNA adducts using high-performance separation techniques coupled to electrospray ionization mass spectrometry

Identification and quantitation of covalent carcinogen-DNA adducts, an important class of biomarkers, is an integral goal in toxicological research. Since these adducts are commonly present at very low levels in in vivo samples, sensitive and specific analytical methodologies are imperative for accurate detection, characterization and quantitation. High-performance separations coupled to electrospray mass spectrometry (ESI-MS) provide the sensitivity and specificity required for the analysis of DNA adducts. This review provides an overview over the research conducted in this area, focusing on the application of HPLC-ESI-MS and CE-ESI-MS techniques for structural analysis and quantitation of modified nucleosides, nucleotides and oligonucleotides.