Analysis of mutations in the Pig-a gene of spleen T-cells from N-ethyl-N-nitrosourea-treated fisher 344 rats.

A rapid in vivo somatic cell gene mutation assay is being developed that measures mutation in the endogenous X-linked phosphatidylinositol glycan, class A gene (Pig-a). The assay detects Pig-a mutants by flow cytometric identification of cells deficient in glycosylphosphatidyl inositol (GPI) anchor synthesis. GPI-deficient, presumed Pig-a mutant cells also can be detected in a cloning assay that uses proaerolysin (ProAER) selection. Previously, we demonstrated that ProAER-resistant (ProAER(r) ) rat spleen T-cells have mutations in the Pig-a gene. In the present study, we report on a more complete analysis of ProAER(r) rat spleen T-cell mutants and describe a mutation spectrum for mutants isolated from rats 4 weeks after treatment with three consecutive doses of 35.6 mg/kg N-ethyl-N-nitrosourea (ENU). We identified a total of 55 independent mutations, with the largest percentage (69%) involving basepair substitution at A:T. The overall spectrum of Pig-a gene mutations was consistent with the types of DNA adducts formed by ENU and was very similar to what has been described for in vivo ENU-induced mutation spectra in other rodent reporter genes (e.g., in the endogenous Hprt gene and transgenic shuttle vectors). These data are consistent with the rat Pig-a assay detecting test-agent-induced mutational responses.