Chapter 9, Problem 42A

Summary Introduction

To determine:

The chemical carcinogens that how it affects the cells.

Introduction : 

Carcinogen is a substance that is capable of causing change in the cell physiology and result in cancer. Cancer is described as abnormal cell growth and they are not controlled by the factors that are responsible for cell division. They lack property of contact inhibition.

Explanation of Solution

Chemical carcinogens works mainly by attacking the nucleophilic center of the DNA molecule. There are mainly two types of chemical carcinogens:

1. Directly acting carcinogens: These chemical attacks directly to the nucleophilic moieties of DNA and result in structural damages. They attack on the nitrogen and oxygen present in the nucleotides. Below are some examples of directly acting carcinogens.

     

2. Indirectly acting carcinogens: These chemicals are not directly involved in damaging DNA. They are water insoluble compounds, which accumulate in the cells and hampers different biological process, which result in changes in DNA. BEow are some examples of indirect carcinogens.