Investigations in vitro and in vivo, of the effects of disulfiram (antabuse) on human lymphocyte chromosomes

Abstract

Pilinskaya showed that the fungicide ziram induced chromosome aberrations in the lymphocytes of exposed industrial workers and also in lymphocyte cultures treated in vitro. Ziram is chemically similar to the drug Antabuse (disulfiram) which is used in the treatment of alcoholics. To establish whether disulfiram can also cause chromosome aberrations, we have examined the chromosomes of lymphocytes from treated and untreated alcoholics and normal controls, and also the chromosomes of lymphocytes treated in vitro. Our results show that disulfiram is 800 times less toxic than ziram and suggest that it is at least 10 000 times less active as an inducer of chromosome aberrations. We found no significant increase in aberrations in vitro or in vivo with disulfiram and conclude that if it is an inducer of aberrations in lymphocytes then they must be induced with a very low frequency indeed.