The mutagenicity of dialkylaminoalkyl chlorides in a battery of short-term assays.

Dialkylaminoalkyl chlorides, valuable chemical manufacturing intermediates, were evaluated for their mutagenicity in several short-term assays: The concentration gradient bacterial mutagen assay, the Ames test, the L5178Y mouse lymphoma cell assay, and the hepatocyte primary culture-DNA repair test. The dialkylaminoethyl chlorides were active in all test systems. The relative mutagenic potencies of the ethyl chlorides were similar in the bacterial tests and the genic potencies of the ethyl chlorides were similar in the bacterial tests and the L5178Y cell assay. The dialkylaminopropyl chlorides were weakly mutagenic in two Salmonella strains but were inactive in the other test systems. The purpose of the test battery used in these studies is to generate data on a test compound which could be used to make a rational prediction of the carcinogenic potential of the compound in test animals. On this basis, the results with the dialkylaminoethyl compounds suggest that if these agents which can form the aziridinium ion were evaluated in in vivo test there is a reasonable chance some would be found to be carcinogenic. Alternatively, the data on the dialkylaminopropyl chlorides indicate that they have a rather low carcinogenic potential.