Effect of disulfiram on the genotoxic potential of acetaldehyde in mouse spermatogonial cells.

The initial purpose of the study was to determine the potential of acetaldehyde (Ace) to increase the rate of sister-chromatid exchanges (SCEs) in mouse spermatogonia. We tested four doses of Ace (from 0.4 to 400.0 mg/kg), including a negative and a positive control group (distilled water and cyclophosphamide, respectively). The results showed that all tested doses were SCE inducers. The highest tested dose increased the control level more than three times. Also, the cumulative frequencies of SCEs per cell were higher in the Ace-treated animals than in the control cells. Ace is transformed into acetate through the enzyme aldehyde dehydrogenase, a process that may be blocked by disulfiram (Dis) generating the accumulation of Ace. The second purpose of the study was to determine if the administration of Dis (150 mg/kg) could increase the SCE rate produced by non-genotoxic doses of Ace. (0.004 and 0.04 mg/kg). The animals treated with the two doses of Ace alone showed no increase in the frequency of SCEs; also, Dis by itself was not an SCE inducer. However, the groups of animals previously treated with Dis showed an increase of 31 and 60% with respect to the values obtained with the two doses of Ace alone. Furthermore, the cumulative frequencies of SCEs per cell were higher in the animals administered with both compounds together than in those treated with them separately. These results suggest the need to extend this type of study to other models. Copyright 2002 Wiley-Liss, Inc.