We have synthesized $^{99m}$Tc-mercaptoacetyltriglycine (MAG3)-biocytin as a new imaging agent for hepatobiliary scintigraphy. The aim of this study was to evaluate the usefulness of $^{99m}$Tc-MAG3-biocytin scintigraphy in differentiating carbon tetrachloride ( $CCl_4$)-induced hepatotoxicity from $\alpha$-naphthylisothiocyanate (ANIT)-induced cholestasis in mice, which reflecting the differential diagnosis of neonatal jaundice caused by neonatal hepatitis from congenital biliary atresia in humans. Methods: Balb/c mice (female, 20 g, n=4-6) were pretreated with $CCl_4$(0.5 or $1.0m\ell$/kg) and ANIT ($150 or 300 m\ell$/kg) 18 h before scintigraphy. Biochemical and histopathological examinations showed a pattern of typical acute hepatitis (increase of transaminases and hepatocellular necnsis) in $CCl_4$-treated mice and cholestasis (increase of alkaline phosphatase and ${\gamma}$-glutamyltransferase, and biliary hyperplasia) in ANIT-treated mice, respectively, Mice were fasted at least 4 hr prior to the intravenous injection of $^{99m}$Tc-MAG3-biocytin (18.5 MBq/20$\mu\textrm{g}$) in 2% human serum albumin in saline. Scintigraphy was performed with a ${\gamma}$-camera equipped with a 1-mm diameter pin-hole collimator for 30 min and images were acquired every 15 s. We compared the values of physical parameters, such as peak liver/heart ratio ($${\gamma}$_{max}$) and peak ratio time ($t_{max}$) far $^{99m}$Tc-MAG3-biocytin scintigraphy. Results: Scintigraphic parameters of the $CCl_4$-pretreated (0.5 $m\ell$/kg) group showed a 81.9% decrease of r$_{max}$, and 42.2% decrease of $t_{max}$, whereas the ANIT-pretreated ( $150m\ell$/kg) group showed a 53% decrease of $r_{max}$, and 2.36-fold increase of $t_{max}$, (P<0.05). These results demonstrate that the decrease of $r_{max}$ and the shortening of $t_{max}$ are characteristic features for hepatotoxicity, in contrast to the increase of $t_{max}$ and decrease of $r_{max}$ for biliary hyperplasia. Conclusion: $^{99m}$Tc-MAG3-biocytin hepatobiliary scintigraphy can distinguish hepatitis from cholestasis in mice model and may be similarly useful in humans which differentiating the cause of neonatal jaundice in clinical study.cal study.cal study.cal study.

Essential hypertension is considered to be a multifactorial disease that is influenced not only by environmental factors but also by genetic factors. Genes involved in lipoprotein synthesis, modification and metabolism are candidates for essential hypertension. The purpose of this study was to estimate gene frequencies of paraoxonase/arylesterase (PON1) gene in Korean population and investigate the relationship between genotypes of this gene and essential hypertension or cardiovascular risk factors. In order to estimate the genotype frequencies, Alw I RFLP of PON1 gene was used as genetic marker. There were no significant differences in allele and genotype frequencies between normotensives and essential hypertensives, respectively. However, Alw I RELP of PON1 gene were significantly associated with plasma HDL-cholesterol level in Korean population (one-way ANOVA test, p=0.008). Therefore, our result suggest that this RFLP of PON1 gene may be protective marker on cardiovascular disease in Korean population.

The detection of many synthetic chemicals used in industry that may pose a genetic hazard in our environment is of great concern at present. In this respect, administrative authorities has great concern to regulate and to evaluate the chemical hazard to environment and human health. The clastogenicity of 28 synthetic chemicals was evaluated in Chinese hamster lung fibroblast cells in vitro. Glycidylacrylate which is one of the most cytotoxic chemical among 28 chemicals tested revealed clastogenicity in the range of 0.31-1.25 $\mu\textrm{g}$/$m\ell$ both in the presence and absence of metabolic activation system. Neopentyl glycol (340-1360 $\mu\textrm{g}$/$m\ell$) also revealed weak positive result both in the presence and absence of metabolic activation system. Cyanoguanidine (/$420.5-841 $\mu\textrm{g}$m\ell$) and N-butylchloride ($231.5-926 $\mu\textrm{g}$/m\ell$) revealed weak positive result only in the absence of S-9 metabolic activation system. Nevertheless total aberration percentages of N-butylchloride in the presence of metabolic activation system, and 3,4＇-dichlorobenztrifluoride in the absence of S-9 metabolic activation revealed above 5% aberration, there is no statistical significance. From the results of chromosomal aberration assay with 28 synthetic chemicals in Chinese hamster lung cells, glycidylacrylate (CAS No. 106-90-0), neopentyl glycol (CAS No. 126-30-7), N-butyl chloride (CAS No. 109-69-3) and cyanoguanidine (CAS No. 461-58-5) revealed positive clastogenic results in this study.

The NBP assay was conducted to determine the photomutagenic or photocarcinogenic potential of alkylating agents. Using a 4-NBP in vitro technique, whereby photochemical treatment on CAS (Chemical Activation System) was performed to investigate the enhancement effect, 20 compounds were shown to undergo alkylating mechanisms with 4-NBP. Chemically meaningful results were obtained with different sets of 20 compounds for the alkylating activities due to the UV irradiation, demonstrating that all of the testing compounds showed increasing photoalkylating effects either in the presence or absence of CAS in comparison with previously reported data, except furoic acid and fumaric acid that showed decreasing effect in the presence of a CAS. Caffeine did not show a meaningful result either. However, these findings demonstrate the effects of potential photoalkylating activity in chemical activation system (CAS) and suggest a potential risk-ranking system for the in vivo assays.

Salsolinol (1-methyl-6,7-dihydroxy-1,2,3,4-tetrahydroisoquinoline, SAL), a dopaminergic isoquinoline neurotoxin, has been implicated to contribute the etiology of Parkinson's disease and neuropathology of chronic alcoholism. In our previous results, SAL was reported to have the mutagenicity and clastogenicity not in bacteria but in mammalian cells, and its genotoxic potential was known to be potentiated in the presence of rat liver S-9 fraction. This may indicate that some metabolite(s) of SAL was involved in the mutagenic potentials. To investigate the SAL metabolites, the metabolism studies of SAL were conducted in vitro rat liver S-9 fraction and in vivo using rats by high performance liquid chromatography and gas chromatography/mass spectrometry. The methylated metabolite of SAL was found in urine of rats, while the same methylating form of metabolite was not produced from the in vitro metabolism system using rat liver S-9 fraction.

Di-2-ethylhexyl phthalate (DEHP) is the most commonly used phthalate ester in polyvinyl chloride formulations including food packing and storage of human blood. DEHP is a well known as non-genotoxic carcinogen and endocrine disrupting chemical (EDC). DEHP have shown all negative results in ICH-guildeline recommended standard genotoxicity test battery. In this study, to assess the clastogenic and DNA damaging effect in human-derived tissue specific cells, DEHP was treated in human derived MCE-7 cells, HepG2 cells, LNCap cells, BeWo cells, MCE-10A cells, and female peripheral blood cells using micronucleus assay and in human breast carcinoma MCF-7 cells up to $1.28$\times$10^{-2}$ M using Comet assay. The in vitro micronucleus assay is a mutagenicity test system for the detection of chemicals which induce the formation of small membrane bound DNA fragment i.e. micronuclei in the cytoplasm of interphase cells, originated from clastogenic and/or aneugenic mechanism. The single cell gel electrophoresis assay (Comet assay) is used to detect DNA strand-breaks and alkaline labile site. In our results, DEHP increased significantly and/or dose-depentently and time-dependently micronucleus frequency at the 6 and 24 hr without metabolic activation system only in MCE-7 cells. DEHP treated with 2 hrs in MCF-7 cells using Comet assay induced DNA damage dose-depentantly.

To identify nongenotoxic carcinogen determined as negative by ICH guideline-recommended standard genotoxicity test battery; Ames test, chromosome aberration assay, mouse lymphoma $tk^{+/-}$ assay, in vivo micronucleus assay, we picked bisphenol A as a model compound. In this study, we applied in vitro BalB/c 3T3 cell transformation assay and Syrian hamster embryo (SHE) cell transfarmation assay. Bisphenol A was treated upto $769.2 ug/m{\ell}$ in BalB/c 3T3 cells and upto $125 ug/m{\ell}$ in SHE cells. bisphenol A didn't induced morphological transformation both with one stage treatment protocol and with two stage treatment protocol. But, treated far 48 hr, Bisphenol A induced morphological transformation significantly in SHE cells.

Kimchi is a major Korean traditional fermented food, as a supplying source of vitamin and minerals which is prepared with various vegetables and condiments such as red pepper, garlic and salted fish etc. There are many types of Kimchi depending on the ingredients and preparation methods used. To investigate the clastogenicity and anticlastogenicity of Baechu (Chinese cabbage) Kimchi and Buchu (leek, Allium odorum) Kimchi in mouse, it was performed acridine orange supravital staining of micronucleus (AOSS-MN) assay using mouse peripheral reticulocytes. Baechu Kimchi and Buchu Kimchi were cultivated by organic agricultural technique, and Kimchi samples were prepared by methanol extraction and lyophilization. First of all, it was studied the clastogenicity of two Kimchi samples themselves (250-1,000 mg/kg) after oral adminstration in mouse. And also to study the anticlastogenic effect of oral administration of Kimchi samples, mitomycin C (MMC, 1 mg/kg, i.p.) was used as micronucleus inducing agent in this study. Dosing scheme was performed as simultaneous (co-treatment), 3 hr before (pre-treatment) and 3 hr after (post-treatment) with MMC treatment. Two Kimchi samples in the range of 250-1,000 mg/kg did not reveal any clastogenic effect in AOSS-MN assay in mouse. They also revealed anticlastogenic effects in post-treatment of Baechu Kimchi (1,000 mg/kg), and in pre-treatment of Buchu Kimchi (500 and 1,000 mg/kg) with statistical significance. The anticlastogenic effect revealed 1 and 6 hr after treatment of Baechu Kimchi, and Buchu Kimchi with 3 and 6 hr pretreatment. Consequently, it is suggested that antimutagenic and anticlastogenic mechanisms of Baechu and Buchu Kimchi in vivo attributed to sipindle formation and kinetic behavior of mutagens such as absorption and metabolism etc.

Bacterial reverse mutation assays were performed for 20 workplace chemicals in Korea, which were selected among workplace chemicals under the Korea Industrial Safety and Health Act (KISHA) with the occupational exposure levels (OELs). The assays were carried out by using the pre-incubation method ($37 ^{\circ}C$, 20 min) with and without metabolic activation using Salmonella typhimurium TA98, TA100, TA1535, TA1537 and E. coli WP2uvrA. The chemicals were tested at 5 concentrations both in the preliminary and the second assays. Despite the cell toxicities, there were no chemical-induced mutagenicities with or without metabolic activation in any of 20 chemicals.