• BMB Reports
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• v.36 no.1
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• pp.20-27
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• 2003

Dihaloalkanes constitute an important group of chemicals because of their widespread use in industry and agriculture and their potential for causing toxicity and cancer. Chronic toxic effects are considered to depend upon bioactivation, either by oxidation or thiol conjugation. Considerable evidence links genotoxicity and cancer with glutathione conjugations reactions, and some aspects of the mechanisms have been clarified with 1,2-dihaloalkanes and dihalomethanes. Recently the DNA repair protein $O^6$-alkylguanine transferase has been shown to produce cytotoxicity and genotoxicity by mans of a thiol-dependent process with similarities to the glutathione reactions.