Mutagenicity of cyclosporine. Induction of sister chromatid exchange in human cells.

To examine whether cyclosporine (CsA) has mutagenic potential against human cells, we analyzed sister chromatid exchange (SCE) induction by CsA using human lymphocytes in vitro. SCE frequencies increased significantly in the lymphocytes treated with 1 microgram/ml and 5 micrograms/ml CsA, though the frequencies seemed to be less than one hundredth of those induced by mitomycin C (MMC). The value of induced SCE depended on CsA concentration. This result indicates that CsA has SCE inducibility. The data also suggest that CsA has a mutagenic effect on human lymphocytes.