Induction of sister-chromatid exchanges in Chinese hamster ovary cells treated in vitro with non-K-region dihydrodiols of 7-methylbenz[a]anthracene and benzo[a]pyrene.

Studies were carried out on the incidence of sister-chromatid exchanges induced in Chinese hamster ovary cells by in vitro treatment with the polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons 7-methylbenz[a]anthracene and benzo[a]pyrene and with related K-region and non-K-region dihydrodiols. Appreciable increased in the incidence of sister-chromatid exchanges were apparent in cells treated with non-K-region dihydrodiols: the most active compounds were 3,4-dihydro-3,4-dihydroxy-7-methylbenz[a]anthracene and 7,8-dihydro-7,8-dihydroxybenzo[a]pyrene and the effects were dose-dependent. The parent hydrocarbons and the related K-region dihydrodiols induced some sister-chromatid exchanges but they were considerably less active than these two non-K-region diols. The results suggest that this system may usefully be applied to studies aimed at determining which dihydrodiols are important in the metabolic activation of the carcinogenic polycyclic hydrocarbons. These and other results also infer that Chinese hamster ovary cells possess some intrinsic ability to metabolize such compounds in the absence of exogenous activation systems.