[Mutagenicity of dichloroacetaldehyde and 2,2-dichloro-1,1-dihydroxy-ethanephosphonic acid methyl ester, possible metabolites of the organophosphate pesticide Trichlorphon].

Dichloroacetaldehyde and 2,2-dichloro-1,1-dihydroxy-ethanephosphonic acid methyl ester which are formed solvolytically from desmethyltrichlorphone, an in vivo metabolite of the organophosphorus pesticide Trichlorphone, show in the dominant lethal test in mice at equimolar dosage (1.6 mmol/kg) a mutagenic activity comparable with that of Trichlorphon. Therefore it cannot be ruled out that the genetic effects of this pesticide may be due in part to the action of its degradation products.