Studies of cadmium cytotoxicity and genotoxicity—cell cycle effects and cytogenetic findings in cultured mammalian cells

In Chinese hamster cells of the line B14F28 CdCl2 caused substantial disturbances of cell cycle kinetics. Studies with synchronized cells showed an elongation of the cell cycle involving all cycle phases, but in particular G1 and G2 + M. Pulse treatment with Cd during the single phases of the cell cycle demonstrated that cells of the late G1‐phase and especially the early to middle S‐phase are most sensitive indicating that the physiological events before and during DNA synthesis are crucial for cell survival. Investigations of the mutagenicity of Cd alone and in combination with selenite yielded the following results in the Chinese hamster cells: • Cd applied continuously for 2 d resulted in only slight increases of sister chromatid exchanges (SCE), while SCE rates were markedly elevated after a 1d exposure ( = ca. 2 cell generations) followed by a 1 d recovery period. This indicates the importance of repair processes. • Cd together with BrdU yielded substantial increases in chromosome aberrations, while...