Deamination: Nitrous Acid as a mutagen
Sodium Nitrate
(NaNO3)
is
a common food additive that also forms naturally when meats
are
preserved by smoking. In the stomach, sodium
nitrate is converted to
nitrous acid (HNO2), which
acts as a
mutagen by deamination of the
NH2 group of adenine and/or cytosine to an ether group, thus
altering their
base
pairing.
Sodium Nitrate is one of many chemicals which, although not directly mutagenic themselves, become mutagenic when metabolized. Standard mutagenicity tests (such as the Ames Test) [iGen 7.14] simulate metabolism by mixing the chemicals with liver extracts .
Sodium Nitrate is one of many chemicals which, although not directly mutagenic themselves, become mutagenic when metabolized. Standard mutagenicity tests (such as the Ames Test) [iGen 7.14] simulate metabolism by mixing the chemicals with liver extracts .