Mutagenicity of metal salts in the L5178Y mouse lymphoma assay

Eleven metals were examined for their potential to induce forward mutations at the thymidine kinase locus in L5178Y mouse lymphoma cells. The materials tested included AlCl3, CdSO4, HgCl2, K2CrO4, K2Cr2O7, MgCl2, MnCl2, NaAsO2, Na2HAsO4, NaCl, and Pb(NO3)2. Strong positive responses at survivals greater than 10% were observed with CdSO4, K2CrO4, K2Cr2O7, and MnCl2. Weak positive responses, yielding 2- to 3-fold increases in mutation frequency above the solvent control at greater than 10% survival, were seen with HgCl2, NaAsO2, Na2HAsO4, and Pb(NO3)2. Negative responses were obtained with MgCl2, NaCl, and AlCl3.