N-Nitroso-2-hydroxymorpholine, a mutagenic metabolite of N-nitrosodiethanolamine.

N-Nitroso-2-hydroxymorpholine was synthesized from N-(2-hydroxyethyl)aminoacetaldehyde diethylacetal by nitrosation and hydrolysis. It was detected as a metabolite of N-nitrosodiethanolamine in rat hepatic 9000 g supernatant. It was mutagenic toward Salmonella typhimurium TA 1535, with and without activation. The results suggest that N-nitroso-2-hydroxymorpholine, which is formed by metabolic beta-oxidation of N-nitrosodiethanolamine, could be involved in carcinogenesis by N-nitrosodiethanolamine.