Mutagenicity of isoquinoline alkaloids, especially of the aporphine type.

The mutagenicity of 44 isoquinoline alkaloids was tested in Salmonella typhimurium TA100 and TA98 in the presence or absence of S9 mix. The alkaloids tested included compounds from the isoquinoline, benzylisoquinoline, bisbenzylisoquinoline, monoterpene isoquinoline, berberine, morphinane, hasubanan, benzo[c]phenanthridine and aporphine groups. Among the alkaloids tested, liriodenine was the most potent mutagen for TA100 and roemerine was the most potent for TA98. A clear structure-mutagenicity relationship was observed in a series of aporphine alkaloids (aporphine, dehydroaporphine, 7-oxoaporphine and 4,5-dioxoaporphine), and 10,11-non-substituted aporphines were suggested to exert their mutagenicity through metabolic activation of the 10,11 positions, possibly as the 10,11-epoxides.