Bile as a source of mutagenic metabolites produced in vivo and detected by Salmonella typhimurium.

The in vivo metabolic activation of several mutagenic compounds was assayed in the bile of rats, with Salmonella typhimurium as the indicator organism. It was determined that for some compounds, particularly the aromatic amines, a substantial percentage of the compound was excreted into the bile as either a nonmutagenic glucuronide conjugate or a mutagenic metabolite of the compound. Relatively low doses of the chemical were detected, and it was possible to follow the excretion pattern of the compounds over the collection period.