UMI
MICROFILMED 1991 INFORMATION TO USERSThis manuscript has been reproduced from the microfflm master. UMI films the text directly from the original or copy submitted. Thus, some thesis and dissertation copies are in typewriter face, while others may be from any type of computer printer.The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. Broken or indistinct print, colored or poor quality illustrations and photographs, print bleedthrough, substandard margins, and improper alignment can adversely affect reproduction.In the unlikely event that the author did not send UMI a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if unauthorized copyright material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion.Oversize materials (e.g., maps, drawings, charts) are reproduced by sectioning the original, beginning at the upper left-hand corner and continuing from left to right in equal sections with small overlaps. Each original is also photographed in one exposure and is included in reduced form at the back of the book.Photographs included in the original manuscript have been reproduced xerographically in this copy. Higher quality 6" x 9" black and white photographic prints are available for any photographs or illustrations appearing in this copy for an additional charge. Contact UMI directly to order.
1991Signature was redacted for privacy.Signature was redacted for privacy.Signature was redacted for privacy.ii Ultraviolet and X-ray light have long beeHxknown to be highly cancer-causing and mutagenic agents [16]. For example, exposure of skin to UV light can induce skin cancer, while X-ray exposure to the thyroid induces thyroid cancer. Electromagnetic radiation, however, may not be assumed to cause all the cells in an exposed population to become cancerous since radiation can also produce many other deleterious changes leading to cell death. A radiation dose sufficient to induce cancer in all cells will virtually kill every cell. Not only can radiation induce simple mutation, it can also produce chromosome fragmentation, resulting in large deletions of genetic material. Thus radiation causes a variety of genetic changes, many of which might contribute to the cancerous state. A well known deleterious effect, xeroderma pigmentosum, is magnified in certain individuals. These people are homozygous for a recessive mutation that inactivates a gene involved in repairing thymine dimers, the major damage caused by UV Similar studies have shown that relatively weak carcinogens are also metabolized by monooxgenation mechanism. In most cases, however, the evidence is much less complete than in the case of B[a]P and rests primarily on comparison of the relative mutagenicities and tumorigenicities of the isomeric dihydrodiols or the corresponding diol epoxides obtained through synthesis.
One-electron oxidation and metabolitesThe monooxygenation mechanism, which emphasizes the important role of the bay-region diol epoxide, has been widely accepted during last 15 years...