Theoretical study of reaction mechanism for subsequent carcinogenic metabolites by nitrosodimethylamine

Abstract The reaction mechanism of multi-step reaction for the formation of the ultimate carcinogen CH 3 N 2 + from nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA) has been theoretically investigated at the B3LYP/6-31G** level. For the hydroxylation reaction of NDMA by oxygen atom, it is found that the path of the oxydation of the CH bond is easier than the path involving singlet/triplet crossing. The study of the potential surface shows that the decomposition of α-hydroxy-NDMA to monomethylnitrosamine has a relatively large energy barrier. The last step involves isomerization and protonation.