Bacterial mutagenicity and carcinogenic potential of some azapyrene derivatives

The mutagenic and carcinogenic activities of 5 azapyrenes, which are suspected of being environmental pollutants, were assessed using the Salmonella assay and the anchorage-independent survival assay. The compounds tested were: 1-azapyrene, 2-azapyrene, 4-azapyrene, 1-aza-2-hydroxypyrene, and 2-aza-1-hydroxypyrene. The compounds were mutagenic and some were also carcinogenic.