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Posted on: November 9, 2007 6:47 PM, by Molecule of the Day
I hadn't heard of this one before today: Mutagen X.
Mutagen X is apparently a byproduct of water chlorination, which isn't so surprising - chloroform (CHCl3) can occur in chlorinated water. This MX stuff is much worse, apparently. Anyone know the immediate source of the carbon?
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Comments
As with chloroform, the carbon source is usually humic acids.
Posted by: John | November 9, 2007 10:59 PM
I'm a water engineer (BS in Chem Eng, MS in Environmental Eng). I'm not sure, but I would guess that the carbon comes from humic or fulvic acids, i.e. NOM (natural organic matter) that is naturally present in surface water, and occasionally groundwater. It's not a single simple molecule, it's a whole family of complex organic soup. I personally haven't heard of Mutagen X, though there are all kinds of disinfection byproducts (DBPs) out there. Chloroform is the most common. THMs (trihalomethanes, of which chloroform is obviously one) and HAAs (haloacetic acids) are the ones that are regulated by the SDWA (safe drinking water act). Is that enough TLAs for you? (three letter acronyms)
Posted by: markmier | November 9, 2007 11:08 PM
Yeah, I've read the "humic acid" explanation, and maybe I'm showing my ignorance, but can't we do a little better? Five-membered lactenones always remind me of ascorbate. Anyone have any idea what the real precursor is? It can't be that diverse a range of substrates for transformation by what amounts to chlorine radical.
Posted by: Molecule of the Day | November 9, 2007 11:13 PM
This would be a good theme for a science-fiction story, IMHO...
Posted by: Renan | November 10, 2007 9:20 AM
Looks like the carbon could have come from an isoprene, but those can come from practically anywhere.
Posted by: Cranberry | November 12, 2007 10:30 AM
I remember the story in Peru where they were worried about trihalomethanes causing cancer in drinking water. So they stopped chlorinating the water for a while, and many died from water-borne bacterial diseases. I'd rather drink THM's than, say, cryptosporidium, etc.
Posted by: joeylawn | November 12, 2007 4:54 PM
Compare Mutagen X, structure and steric bulk, with that of Vioxx,
http://www.worldofmolecules.com/drugs/Rofecoxib.png
A little lab work toward the intersection would be interesting. Furanones can be scccharide degradation products. To what does Splenda pyrolyze at cooking, baking, and crust-browning temps?
Posted by: Uncle Al | November 13, 2007 1:30 PM