Correlation between mixed-function oxidase enzyme induction and aflatoxin B1-induced unscheduled DNA synthesis in the chick embryo, in vivo.

The unscheduled DNA synthesis (UDS) technique has been adapted for use in the chick embryo, in vivo, to determine the relationship between induction of the mixed-function oxidase (MFO) enzyme system and genetic damage from an indirect-acting mutagen-carcinogen. Embryos were injected at 6 days of incubation (DI) with either phenobarbital (PB), a specific inducer of P-450-associated enzyme activities, or 3,4,3',4'-tetrachlorobiphenyl (TCB), a specific inducer of P1-450-associated enzyme activities. Aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) was injected 24 hr later (7 DI), followed by a 5-hr continuous 3H-thymidine exposure. The livers were removed, prepared for autoradiography, and hepatocytes were scored for an increase in grains/nucleus, indicative of UDS. Aflatoxin B1 caused a dose-related increase in UDS in all control and induction groups. Phenobarbital-induced embryos had an increased UDS response while TCB-induced embryos had a decreased UDS response, relative to noninduced embryos, for each dosage of AFB1. This suggests that the genotoxicity of an indirect-acting mutagen-carcinogen can be either increased or decreased, in vivo, depending on the inducer used. The chick embryo provides an excellent system for studying the effect of MFO induction on the genotoxicity of promutagen-carcinogens in a developing system.