Prostaglandins and mutagenesis: modification of phenytoin induced genetic damage by prostaglandins in lymphocyte cultures.

Diphenylhydantoin (DPH) is known to cause genetic damage both in vivo and in vitro. We investigated the effect of prostaglandin E1, E2 and F2 alpha on DPH induced chromosomal aberrations in lymphocyte cultures in vitro. Prostaglandin E1 prevented and/or reversed DPH induced chromosomal aberrations, whereas PGE2 and PGF2 alpha were without inhibitory action. In fact, PGE2 and PGF2 alpha themselves induced genetic damage comparable to that of DPH, suggesting that PGE2 and PGF2 alpha are mutagenic in nature whereas PGE1 has anti-mutagenic properties. These results are consistent with the hypothesis that an altered prostaglandin system could be involved in mutagenesis.