In vitro genotoxic and cytotoxic effects of doxepin and escitalopram on human peripheral lymphocytes

Antidepressants are drugs used for the treatment of many psychiatric conditions including depression. There are findings suggesting that these drugs might have genotoxic, carcinogenic, and/or mutagenic effects. Therefore, the present in vitro study is intended to investigate potential genotoxic and cytotoxic effects of the antidepressants escitalopram (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor) and doxepin (Tricyclic antidepressant) on human peripheral lymphocytes cytokinesis-block micronucleus (CBMN), sister chromatid exchange (SCE), and single cell gel electrophoresis (alkaline comet assay) were used for the purpose of the study. In the study, four different concentrations of both drugs (1, 2.5, 5, and 10?µg/mL) were administered to human peripheral lymphocytes for 24?h. The tested concentrations of both drugs were found to exhibit no cytotoxic and mitotic inhibitory effects. SCE increase caused by 5 and 10?µg/mL of escitalopram was found statistically significant, while no statistically significant increase was observed in DNA damage and micronucleus (MN) formation. Moreover, the increase caused by doxepin in MN formation was not found statistically significant. Besides, 10?µg/mL of doxepin was demonstrated to significantly increase arbitrary unit and SCE formation. These findings suggest that the investigated concentrations of escitalopram and doxepin were non-cytotoxic but potentially genotoxic at higher concentrations.     

消旋酶法DL-丙氨酸的遗传毒性研究

目的 评价消旋酶法DL-丙氨酸的遗传毒性。方法 小鼠骨髓细胞微核实验设阴性对照组（纯水）、阳性对照组（环磷酰胺40 mg/kg）和消旋酶法DL-丙氨酸3个剂量组（10 000、5 000和2 500 mg/kg）,观察各组小鼠胸骨骨髓细胞微核发生率;小鼠精原细胞染色体畸变实验设阴性对照组（纯水）、阳性对照组（环磷酰胺40 mg/kg）和消旋酶法DL-丙氨酸3个剂量组（10 000、5 000和2 500 mg/kg）,观察各组小鼠睾丸精原细胞染色体畸变类型并计算畸变率。细菌回复突变实验（Ames实验）设空白对照组、溶剂对照组、阳性对照组和消旋酶法DL-丙氨酸5个剂量组（50、158、500、1 580、5 000 μg/皿和8、40、200、1 000、5 000 μg/皿）,计数各组回复突变菌落数。结果 小鼠骨髓细胞微核实验结果显示,各剂量组消旋酶法DL-丙氨酸微核细胞率与对照组的差异无统计学意义（P>0.05）;小鼠精原细胞染色体畸变实验结果显示,各剂量组消旋酶法DL-丙氨酸动物睾丸精原细胞染色体畸变率与对照组的差异无统计学意义（P>0.05）;细菌回复突变实验结果显示,在加或不加S9的情况下,各剂量组消旋酶法DL-丙氨酸对TA97a、TA98、TA100、TA102、TA1535菌株均无致突变作用,差异无统计学意义（P>0.05）。结论 消旋酶法DL-丙氨酸未见明显遗传毒性。     

Mitigative role of garlic and vitamin E against cytotoxic,genotoxic, and apoptotic effects of lead acetate and mercury chloride on WI-38 cells

Background

Lead acetate (Led) and mercury chloride (Mer) represent important ecological and public health concerns due to their hazardous toxicities. Naturally found products play a vital role in chemopreventive agent innovation. The current study aimed to assess the modifying effect of garlic (Gar) and/or vitamin E (Vit E) against the half-maximal inhibitory concentration (IC50) Led and/or Mer-induced cytotoxic, genotoxic and apoptotic effects.

Investigation of the in vitro toxicological properties of the synthetic cannabimimetic drug CP-47,497-C8

Cannabicyclohexanol (CP-47,497-C8) is a representative of a group of cannabimimetic cyclohexylphenols which is added to herbal mixtures as a cannabis substitute since 2008. Although in the beginning CP-47,497-C8 was the main ingredient of “Spice” and similar products, it was partly replaced by aminoalkylindole-type cannabinoid receptor agonists like JWH-018, JWH-073 or JWH-250, but never completely disappeared from the market. Since information on its toxicological properties is scarce, we investigated the effects of the drug in human derived cell lines. The cytotoxic effects were studied in a panel of assays (SRB, XTT, LDHe and NR tests) in a buccal derived (TR146) and a liver derived (HepG2) cell line. The strongest effects were seen in the two former assays at levels ≥ 7.5 μM indicating that the compound interferes with protein synthesis and causes membrane damage. In additional comet assays, DNA damage was detected at levels ≥ 10 μM. Experiments with lesion specific enzymes showed that these effects are not due to oxidative damage of DNA bases. The negative findings obtained in Salmonella/microsome assays and the positive results of micronucleus tests with the cell lines indicate that the compound does not cause gene mutations but acts on the chromosomal level. In contrast to other synthetic cannabinoids, no indication for estrogenic/antiestrogenic properties was seen in a luciferase assay with bone marrow derived U2-OS cells. In conclusion, our findings show that the drug has only weak cytotoxic properties. However, the induction of chromosomal damage indicates that it may cause adverse effects in users due to its impact on the stability of the genetic material.     

Pre-clinical in vitro and in vivo safety evaluation of bovine whey derived osteopontin,Lacprodan® OPN-10

Lacprodan® OPN-10 is a proprietary whey-based protein product that contains bovine-derived osteopontin (OPN), found in human milk and other bodily tissues. In vitro genotoxicity tests conducted according to accepted guidelines at up to 5000 μg/plate OPN failed to induce genetic mutations in Salmonella typhimurium strains and Escherichia coli strain and did not induce chromosomal aberrations or cytotoxicity in human lymphocytes. Administration of an acute dose of Lacprodan® OPN-10 (2300 mg/kg body weight) to male and female mice did not induce chromosomal damage or mitotic apparatus damage to erythroblasts from bone marrow. Lacprodan® OPN-10 was evaluated in a 13-week oral toxicity study in which rats were fed diets containing 0.5%, 1.0% and 2.0% Lacprodan® OPN-10. No test-article-related clinical observations or toxicological effects on body or organ weights, food consumption, ophthalmic effects, locomotor activity, hematology, clinical chemistry, urinalysis, or pathology were identified. In a teratogenicity study, administration of Lacprodan® OPN-10 up to 2500 mg/kg bw/day via gavage to pregnant rats had no effect on dams or pups. The No Observed Adverse Effect Level (NOAEL) for Lacprodan® OPN-10 in the 13-week toxicity study was 2.0% of the diet (equivalent to 1208 mg/kg bw/day in male rats and 1272 mg/kg bw/day in female rats).     

Genotoxic evaluation of titanium dioxide nanoparticles in vivo and in vitro

With the extensive application of titanium dioxide (TiO₂) nanoparticles (NPs) in food industry, there is a rising debate concerning the possible risk associated with exposure to TiO₂ NPs. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the genotoxicity of TiO₂ NPs using in vivo and in vitro test systems. In vivo study, the adult male Sprague-Dawley rats were exposed to anatase TiO₂ NPs (75 ± 15 nm) through intragastric administration at 0, 10, 50 and 200 mg/kg body weight every day for 30 days. The γ-H₂AX assay showed TiO₂ NPs could induce DNA double strand breaks in bone marrow cells after oral administration. However, the micronucleus test revealed that the oral-exposed TiO₂ NPs did not cause damage to chromosomes or mitotic apparatus observably in rat bone marrow cells. In vitro study, Chinese hamster lung fibroblasts (V79 cells) were exposed to TiO₂ NPs at the dose of 0, 5, 10, 20, 50 and 100 μg/mL. Significant decreases in cell viability were detected in all the treated groups after 24 h and 48 h exposure. Significant DNA damage was only observed at the concentration of 100 μg/mL after 24 h treatment using the comet assay. The obvious gene mutation was observed at the concentration of 20 and 100 μg/mL after 2 h treatment using hypoxanthine-guanine phosphoribosyl transferase (HPRT) gene mutation assay. This study presented a comprehensive genotoxic evaluation of TiO₂ NPs, and TiO₂ NPs were shown to be genotoxic both in vivo and in vitro tests. The gene mutation and DNA strand breaks seem to be more sensitive genetic endpoints for the detection of TiO₂ NPs induced genotoxic effects.     

Nicotine derived genotoxic effects in human primary parotid gland cells as assessed in vitro by comet assay,cytokinesis-block micronucleus test and chromosome aberrations test

Genotoxic effects of nicotine were described in different human cells including salivary gland cells. Based on the high nicotine concentration in saliva of smokers or patients using therapeutic nicotine patches, the current study was performed to evaluate the genotoxic potential of nicotine in human salivary gland cells.Therefore, primary salivary gland cells from 10 patients undergoing parotid gland surgery were exposed to nicotine concentrations between 1 μM and 1000 μM for 1 h in the absence of exogenous metabolic activation. The acinar phenotype was proven by immunofluorescent staining of alpha-amylase. Genotoxic effects were evaluated using the Comet assay, the micronucleus test and the chromosome aberration test. Cytotoxicity and apoptosis were determined by trypan blue exclusion test and Caspase-3 assay.Nicotine was able to induce genotoxic effects in all three assays. The chromosome aberration test was the most sensitive and increases in numerical and structural (chromatid-type and chromosome-type) aberrations were seen at ⩾1 μM, whereas increases in micronuclei frequency were detected at 10 μM and DNA damage as measured in the Comet assay was noted at >100 μM. No cytotoxic damage or influence of apoptosis could be demonstrated.Nicotine as a possible risk factor for tumor initiation in salivary glands is still discussed controversially. Our results demonstrated the potential of nicotine to induce genotoxic effects in salivary gland cells. These results were observed at saliva nicotine levels similar to those found after oral or transdermal exposure to nicotine and suggest the necessity of careful monitoring of the use of nicotine in humans.     

体内彗星实验联合微核实验检测化合物的遗传毒性

目的:考察体内彗星实验联合微核实验检测化合物遗传毒性的可行性。方法:以阳性化合物N-乙基-N-亚硝基脲为模型药物,取♂大鼠随机分为空白对照组和给药组[40 mg/(kg·d)],每组5只,灌胃给药3次,末次给药后3 h处死大鼠。进行彗星实验,收集大鼠外周血、肝、胃、睾丸组织经前处理制备成单细胞凝胶玻片进行电泳,使用Komet 6.0软件分析单细胞显微图像,每种组织分析100个细胞(胃组织50个细胞),计算尾部DNA百分含量。进行微核实验,收集大鼠骨髓细胞进行涂片,计数2 000个嗜多染红细胞(PCE)中含微核细胞(MNPCE)的数目及嗜多染红细胞微核率。结果:与空白对照组比较,模型药物可使大鼠外周血淋巴、肝、胃、睾丸细胞组织的尾部DNA百分含量明显增加(P<0.05),并可使大鼠骨髓嗜多染红细胞微核率明显升高(P<0.05)。结论:彗星实验可用于动物体内多种脏器遗传毒性的检测;微核实验可用于动物骨髓细胞的遗传毒性检测。     

Genotoxic effects of acrylamide and glycidamide in mouse lymphoma cells.

In addition to occupational exposures to acrylamide (AA), concerns about AA health risks for the general population have been recently raised due to the finding of AA in food. In this study, we evaluated the genotoxicity of AA and its metabolite glycidamide (GA) in L5178Y/Tk(+/-) mouse lymphoma cells. The cells were treated with 2-18 mM of AA or 0.125-4 mM of GA for 4 h without metabolic activation. The DNA adducts, mutant frequencies and the types of mutations for the treated cells were examined. Within the dose range tested, GA induced DNA adducts of adenine and guanine [N3-(2-carbamoyl-2-hydroxyethyl)-adenine and N7-(2-carbamoyl-2-hydroxyethyl)-guanine] in a linear dose-dependent manner. The levels of guanine adducts were consistently about 60-fold higher across the dose range than those of adenine. In contrast, no GA-derived DNA adducts were found in the cells treated with any concentrations of AA, consistent with a lack of metabolic conversion of AA to GA. However, the mutant frequency was significantly increased by AA at concentrations of 12 mM and higher. GA was mutagenic starting with the 2mM dose, suggesting that GA is much more mutagenic than AA. The mutant frequencies were increased with increasing concentrations of AA and GA, mainly due to an increase of proportion of small colony mutants. To elucidate the underlying mutagenic mechanism, we examined the loss of heterozygosity (LOH) at four microsatellite loci spanning the entire chromosome 11 for mutants induced by AA or GA. Compared to GA induced mutations, AA induced more mutants whose LOH extended to D11Mit22 and D11Mit74, an alteration of DNA larger than half of the chromosome. Statistical analysis of the mutational spectra revealed a significant difference between the types of mutations induced by AA and GA treatments (P=0.018). These results suggest that although both AA and GA generate mutations through a clastogenic mode of action in mouse lymphoma cells, GA induces mutations via a DNA adduct mechanism whereas AA induces mutations by a mechanism not involving the formation of GA adducts.