Abstract
WORKING on suggestions put forward by Schmidt and by Swartholm, a number of French and English workers, notably A. Pullman, B. Pullman, P. Daudel, R. Daudel and C. A. Coulson, have developed a hypothesis relating the carcinogenic power of polycyclic aromatics to the structures of these compounds on the basis of quantum mechanics. Evidence has been accumulating in recent years which does indicate a fair correlation to exist between the reactivity calculated for the most reactive double bond in these molecules and their carcinogenicity. The reactive region thus supposed to be mainly responsible for neoplastic activity is usually termed the K-region.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Boyland, E., J. Chim. Phys., 47, 942 (1950). Cf. Truhaut, R., in “Les facteurs chimiques de cancérisation” (Sedes, Paris, 1948), and Prato, M., and Nebbia, G., in “Le sostanze cancerigene” (“Leonardo da Vinci” ed., Bari, Italy, 1950).
Eckhardt, H. J., Ber., 73, 13 (1940).
Boyland, E., Biochim. et Biophys. Acta, 4, 293 (1950).
Badger, G. M., J. Chem. Soc., 456 and 1909 (1949). Badger, G. M., and Lynn, K. R., ibid., 1726 (1950).
For example, Kooyman, E. C., Dis. Farad. Soc., 10, 163 (1951).
Kooyman, E. C., and Farenhorst, E., Nature, 169, 153 (1952).
Cf. Waters, W. A., “The Chemistry of Free Radicals”, chap. 12 (Clarendon Press, Oxford, 1948).
Magat, M., and Bonême, R., C.R. Acad. Sci., Paris, 232, 1657 (1951).
Cf. Burkitt, F. H., Coulson, C. A., and Longuet-Higgins, H. C., Trans. Farad. Soc., 47, 553 (1951).
Lacassagne, A., Buu Hoi, Ng., and Rudali, G., Brit. J. Exp. Path., 26, 5 (1945).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
KOOYMAN, E., HERINGA, J. Extension of the K-Region Hypothesis of Carcinogenic Chemical Compounds. Nature 170, 661–662 (1952). https://doi.org/10.1038/170661a0
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/170661a0
- Springer Nature Limited