Chemical carcinogenesis investigation

Historically the process of activation has almost exclusively been studied by metabolizing compounds with liver preparations, leading most investigators in chemical carcinogenesis to think that... 

Although aminoacyl-tRNA synthetases are necessary for protein synthesis in all tissues, their importance in chemical carcinogenesis is difficult to assess. Mutation induction by this pathway has been studied extensively (123), yet metabolic activation in a carcinogen-target tissue has not been demonstrated. The only exception is hepatic prolyl-tRNA synthetase activation of N-hydroxy-Trp-P-2 however, hepatic O-acetylation of this substrate also occurs to an appreciable extent (12). Further investigations involving the use of specific enzyme inhibitors would be helpful in addressing this problem. 

Together with the groups of Falvey and of Cramer, we have recently reported TRIR studies of a variety of arylnitrenium ions [129]. Arylnitrenium ions are short-lived, electrophilic species [130], that have received considerable attention in recent years due to their suspected role in chemical carcinogenesis [131], Despite this biochemical interest there is very little detailed experimental information on arylnitrenium ion structures. The inherent instability of these species usually renders them unsuitable for X-ray crystallography or high-resolution NMR investigation. (Certain highly stabilized nitrenium ions, however, have been examined with these techniques [132].)... 

Such reactions have only been investigated on their role in the processes of ageing and carcinogenesis to a large extent (Dizdaroglu 1991), their effects on environmental contaminants and organisms have not been fully realized. Because of the short time and difficulties in chemical analyses for transitory presence of free radicals, relationship between free radical concentrations and effects on pollutants or natural microorganisms has not been fully established. It is clear that further... 

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