Mutagenic agent

A mutagenic agent is a physical, chemical, or biological substance capable of causing permanent alterations to genetic material (DNA) in living organisms, leading to an increased rate of mutations. These agents include ionizing radiation (such as X-rays, gamma rays), non-ionizing radiation (UV), alkylating agents (e.g., ethyl methane sulfonate, methyl methane sulfonate), deaminating agents (e.g., nitrous acid), polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (e.g., in smoke or charred foods), some metals (chromium trioxide, arsenic), intercalating agents (e.g., ethidium bromide), and certain viruses and bacteria (such as HPV, EBV, H. pylori)[1][5][7]. Mutagenic agents can act directly by damaging DNA or indirectly by being metabolically activated to DNA-reactive forms[4]. They are important in risk assessments for cancer and genetic disease, but "mutagenic agent" is not a single druggable or therapeutic target and thus is not treated as a canonical molecular entity in biomedical databases[1][5].

Other names

MutagenMutagensMutagenic compoundDNA-damaging agent