Direct alkylation of 2'-deoxynucleosides and DNA following in vitro reaction with acrylamide.

Reaction of the rodent carcinogen acrylamide (AM) at pH 7.0 and 37 degrees C for 10 and 40 days with 2'-deoxyadenosine (dAdo), 2'-deoxycytidine (dCyd), 2'-deoxyguanosine (dGuo), and thymidine (dThd) resulted in the formation of 2-formamidoethyl and 2-carboxyethyl adducts via Michael addition. The alkylated 2'-deoxynucleoside adducts isolated (% yield after 40 days) were 1-(2-carboxyethyl)-dAdo (1-CE-dAdo) (8%), N6-CE-dAdo (21%) (via Dimroth rearrangement of 1-CE-dAdo), 1-CE-dGuo (4%), 7-(2-formamidoethyl)-Gua (7-FAE-Gua) (6%), 7, 9-bis-FAE-Gua (1%) (formed by reaction of AM with depurinated 7-FAE-Gua during the course of the reaction), and 3-FAE-dThd (4%). The products isolated following in vitro reaction of AM with calf thymus DNA at pH 7.0 and 37 degrees C for 40 days were (nmol/mg DNA) 1-CE-dAdo (5.5), N6-CE-dAdo (1.4), 3-CE-dCyd (2.8), 1-CE-dGuo (0.3), and 7-FAe-Gua (1.6). Compound 3-FAE-dThd was not detected. Structures were assigned on the basis of chemical properties, UV spectra, and electron impact, chemical ionization, desorption chemical ionization, Californium-252 fission fragment ionization, and fast atom bombardment mass spectra. A facile hydrolysis of the amide group to a carboxylic acid was observed when AM alkylated a ring nitrogen adjacent to an exocyclic nitrogen atom. In previous studies, we had observed an analogous phenomenon when studying the in vitro reactions of acrylonitrile with DNA, i.e., a facile hydrolysis of nitrile to carboxylic acid when acrylonitrile alkylated (via Michael addition) a ring nitrogen adjacent to an exocyclic nitrogen. Since the nitrile group hydrolyzes to a carboxylic acid via an amide intermediate, we had hypothesized in the present study that the same facile hydrolysis of amide to carboxylic acid would occur under identical stereochemical conditions as had occurred with the nitrile group. Thus, in vitro alkylation of calf thymus DNA by both acrylonitrile and, in the present study, AM, resulted in mixed adduct formation.