Mutations have been studied for several decades in order to understand biological processes of great significance and the selection of better-adapted species. Our knowledge both of mutation spectra induced by genotoxic agents and the mechanisms involved in DNA damage processing is more advanced in bacteria than in animal cells. However, the use of new technologies such as shuttle vectors or the polymerase chain reaction will undoubtedly allow rapid progress in the next few years. Shuttle vectors consist of target sequences for monitoring mutagenic activity and additional sequences permitting DNA replication and selection, both in bacteria and in mammalian cells. These plasmids are very efficient in allowing the production of mutation spectra of a particular genotoxin in animal cells. In most cases, base substitutions occur predominantly at the sites of base damage and the type of substitution depends on the kind of damage. This has been well characterized using ultraviolet (UV) light as a mutagen. UV-induced mutations are targeted opposite pyrimidine-pyrimidine sites, where the two major UV lesions are produced. The direct relationships existing between mutation and cancer are exemplified by some hereditary diseases where deficiency in an enzymatic repair system is linked to a high incidence of tumours. Similarly, activation of some cellular proto-oncogenes occurs via specific point mutations. A correlation does exist between the mutation spectra found in model systems and the specific mutation found in the activated oncogene in tumours induced by a given genotoxin. This is particularly well illustrated in the DNA repair deficiency syndrome, xeroderma pigmentosum. The specific mutations found in activated ras oncogenes isolated from UV-stimulated skin tumours correlate well with the mutagenic properties of unrepaired UV-induced DNA lesions.
