Comparative mutagenicity tests in the Salmonella/microsome assay with rat and woodchuck S9 preparations.

The Salmonella mutagenicity assay was utilized to compare the hepatic S9 fractions from untreated and 3-methylcholanthrene (MC) induced woodchucks with Aroclor 1254 induced rats. Three known promutagens, benzo[a]pyrene (BP), 7,12-dimethylbenz[a]anthracene (DMBA), and 2-aminofluorene (AF) were tested at 5 concentrations with the strain TA100 against 3 levels of S9 fraction. Both woodchuck S9 fractions were as effective as the rat S9 in activating BP and both were more effective than the rat S9 in activating DMBA. Untreated woodchuck S9 was also as effective as rat S9 in activating AF. The protein content of the S9 fraction did not differ significantly between rats and woodchucks, but the P-450 content of the rat S9 was approximately 3.5 times that of woodchuck.