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Mutagenicity Of Acridines In A Reversion Assay Based On Tetracycline Resistance In Plasmid Pbr322 In Escherichia Coli, George R. Hoffman, Suzanne M. Deschênes, Teresa Manyin, Robert P. P. Fuchs

Biology Faculty Publications

The mutagenicity of a series of acridine compounds was studied in an assay based on the reversion of mutations in the tetracycline-resistance gene (tet) of plasmid pBR322 in Escherichia coli. Mutations that restore the tetracycline-resistant phenotype were detected in tetracycline-sensitive strains carrying mutant plasmids. Mutations that revert by +2, +1, −1, and −2 frameshift mutations and by base-pair substitutions were used to analyze the mutagenicity of two simple acridines, two acridine mustards, and a nitroacridine. The simple acridines (9-aminoacridine and quinacrine) effectively induced −1 frameshifts and weakly induced +1 frameshifts. The acridine mustards (quinacrine mustard and ICR-191) …