ABSTRACT
Stimulation of microsomal superoxide production in vitro was measured for various nitroaromatic substrates including methyl viologen, selected key munitions pollutants, and amines that can be formed from the munitions in the environment. Superoxide production mediated by microsomes from hepatic extracts required the addition of a redox active substrate and the cofactor NADPH. In the system, production of superoxide radical was stimulated by four of the five environmental munitions pollutants tested in the order: 1,3,5-trinitrobenzene > 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene > 1,3-dinitrobenzene >2,4-dinitrotoluene. For all the parent munition compounds stimulating superoxide production, substitution of analogous amines as substrates resulted in significantly reduced production rates. In general, rates of superoxide production stimulated by the munitions compounds correlated well with their capacity to be reduced biologically.
