Genotoxicity of 2-nitropropane and 1-nitropropane in Salmonella typhimurium and human lymphocytes.

A 10- and 12-fold increase of revertant numbers could be demonstrated for 2-nitropropane (2-NP of greater than 99% purity) tested in the preincubation assay with Salmonella typhimurium strains TA 100 and TA 98 in the presence and absence of S9 mix. In the nitroreductase-deficient strains TA 100NR and TA 98NR, 2-NP was less mutagenic than in the parent strains. In human lymphocytes the induction of a weak clastogenic effect and of sister chromatid exchanges required exogenous metabolic activation. No significant mutagenic or cytogenetic response was found with 1-nitropropane of 97% purity in S. typhimurium or human lymphocytes.