Mutagenic Carcinogenicity of Acrylamide in Mouse Lungs

NCTR scientists have shown that acrylamide (AA) and its metabolite, glycidamide (GA), administered to Big Blue mice in drinking water induced an increase in mutant frequencies and produced similar mutation spectra in the lung. The frequencies and types of mutations induced by AA and GA in the lung are consistent with AA exerting its genotoxicity through metabolism to GA. A previous two-year drinking water cancer bioassay of AA, conducted at NCTR in collaboration with the NIEHS National Toxicology Program, demonstrated that the lung was a target organ for carcinogenicity in mice. A manuscript describing the results of this study is now available online at Environmental and Molecular Mutagenesis .

For additional information, please contact Mugimane Manjanatha, Ph.D., Division of Genetic and Molecular Toxicology, FDA/NCTR.

Physiologically Based Pharmacokinetic (PBPK) Modeling of Bisphenol A (BPA)

NCTR scientists published a review article in Frontiers in Pharmacology that focused on the rationale and utilization of various NCTR-conducted BPA studies across species (rodents, nonhuman primates), life stages (adults, infants), and routes of administration (intravenous, oral) to construct the BPA PBPK model. The authors also discuss important aspects related to gastrointestinal metabolism of BPA, as well as biliary excretion, enterohepatic recirculation, and renal reabsorption of BPA conjugates. The use of computational modeling to quantitatively understand the processes that drive the pharmacokinetics of BPA in different species and life stages increases confidence in the extrapolation of animal studies to humans and in the interpretation of human biomonitoring data.

For additional information, please contact Jeffrey Fisher, Ph.D., Division of Biochemical Toxicology, FDA/NCTR.

Human Respiratory Coronaviruses Detected in Patients with Influenza-Like Illness in Arkansas

Scientists from FDA's NCTR and Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, CDC, The Ohio State University, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, and the Arkansas Department of Health investigated the molecular epidemiology of human coronavirus (HCoV) strains circulating during the 2009/2010 influenza season, their genetic variability, and their association with reported influenza symptoms. The study analyzed 200 clinical nasal-swab samples and showed that 39.5% of the non-influenza respiratory illnesses were caused by HCoVs, with HCoV-OC43 and NL63-like being the most frequently detected strains. Additionally, a possible new strain of CoV (similar to feline CoV) was detected in samples from three patients. Some strains of coronavirus induce symptoms similar to influenza causing individuals to seek treatment. Recently, more serious forms of coronavirus have surfaced (MERS and SARS) causing deaths in more serious infections. This study is available online at Virology & Mycology .

For additional information, please contact Marli Azevedo, Ph.D., Division of Microbiology, FDA/NCTR.