The Role of Acetylation in Benzidine Metabolism and DNA Adduct Formation in Dog and Rat Liver

To determine whether benzidine is acetylated in dog, like rat, the metabolism of benzidine was assessed with dog and rat liver slices. Slices were incubated with 0.05 mM [³H]benzidine for 4 h. Media and cellular DNA were analyzed for acetylated benzidine metabolites and adducts. In rat, benzidine was rapidly converted to acetylated metabolites. At 1 h, benzidine, N-acetylbenzidine, and N,N'-diacetylbenzidine represented 5%, 23%, and 54%, respectively, of the total radioactivity in media. Within 2 h, 75% of the radioactivity was N,N' diacetylbenzidine. In dog, 45% of the radioactivity was present in metabolites more polar than benzidine by 4 h. No N-acetylated metabolites were observed in dog liver slice media. To identify acetylated benzidine DNA adducts, N-(deoxyguanosin-8-yl)-N,N'-diacetylbenzidine was prepared and identified by FAB MS. This nucleoside adduct was used to synthesize N-(deoxyguanosin-8-yl)-N-acetylbenzidine and N'-(deoxyguanosin-8-yl)-N-acetylbenzidine. Nucleoside adducts from slices incubated with [³H]benzidine were analyzed by HPLC. With this method of analysis, the ³H-material did not correlate with the synthetic adduct standards. To improve sensitivity and identify liver adducts, a ³²P-postlabeling method was developed. 2'-Deoxyguanosine 3'-monophosphate adduct standards of acetylated benzidine were prepared. ³²P-Postlabeling analysis demonstrated that rat liver contained only (N'-(3'-monophosphodeoxyguanosine-8-yl)-N-acetylbenzidine after a 1- or 4-h exposure to benzidine. In contrast, no acetylated adducts were detected in dog. Results indicate that dog is a nonacetylator with respect to benzidine. The availability of acetylated benzidine nucleotide standards allowed unambiguous identification of N'-(3'-monophosphodeoxyguanosin-8-yl)-N-acetylbenzidine as the adduct present in rat liver slices. These nucleotide adduct standards will be useful in subsequent studies in animals and human.