3-(2-Deoxy--D-erythro-pentofuranosyl)pyrimido[1,2-␣]purin-10(3H)-one (M1dG) is a DNA adduct arising from the reaction of 2-deoxyguanosine with the lipid peroxidation product, malondialdehyde, or the DNA peroxidation product, base propenal. M 1dG is mutagenic in bacteria and mammalian cells and is present in the genomic DNA of healthy human beings. It is also detectable, albeit at low levels, in the urine of healthy individuals, which may make it a useful biomarker of DNA damage linked to oxidative stress. We investigated the possibility that the low urinary levels of M 1dG reflect metabolic conversion to derivatives. M 1dG was rapidly removed from plasma (t1/2 ؍ 10 min) after i.v. administration to rats. A single urinary metabolite was detected that was identified as 6-oxo-M 1dG by MS, NMR spectroscopy, and independent chemical synthesis. 6-Oxo-M1dG was generated in vitro by incubation of M 1dG with rat liver cytosols, and studies with inhibitors suggested that xanthine oxidase and aldehyde oxidase are involved in the oxidative metabolism. M1dG also was metabolized by three separate human liver cytosol preparations, indicating 6-oxo-M1dG is a likely metabolite in humans. This represents a report of the oxidative metabolism of an endogenous DNA adduct and raises the possibility that other endogenous DNA adducts are metabolized by oxidative pathways. 6-Oxo-M1dG may be a useful biomarker of endogenous DNA damage associated with inflammation, oxidative stress, and certain types of cancer chemotherapy.excretion ͉ inflammation ͉ DNA damage ͉ oxidation ͉ metabolite D NA damage from endogenous sources is believed to contribute significantly to human genetic diseases, including cancer (1, 2). A major cause of endogenous DNA damage is oxidation (3, 4). Agents such as hydroxyl radical or peroxynitrous acid oxidize nucleic acid bases or the deoxyribose backbone to form miscoding lesions or induce strand breaks (5). In addition, oxidation of other cellular constituents (i.e., lipid, protein) generates reactive derivatives that form adducts with nucleic acid bases (1). In the absence of repair, this panoply of damage results in mutations, triggers signaling to arrest cell division, or induces apoptosis.3-(2-Deoxy--D-er ythro-pentofuranosyl)pyrimido[1,2-␣]purin-10(3H)-one (M 1 dG) is an adduct found at varying levels in genomic DNA of rodents and humans (6-8). It is derived from the lipid oxidation product, malondialdehyde, or the DNA oxidation product, base propenal (Scheme 1) (9-11). M 1 dG is miscoding when assayed by in vitro DNA replication and is mutagenic in bacterial and mammalian cells (12)(13)(14). It induces base pair substitutions (M 1 dG3T and M 1 dG3A) and frameshift mutations in reiterated sequences (e.g., CG n ) when shuttle vectors containing a site-specific lesion are replicated in COS-7 cells (14). Genetic and biochemical experiments indicate that M 1 dG is removed by nucleotide excision repair in both bacterial and mammalian cells (13-15).As a prerequisite for preclinical, clinical, and populationbased ...