Recent progress in quantitative analysis of DNA adducts of nephrotoxin aristolochic acid

Aristolochic acid (AA), a mixture of structure-related nitrophenanthrene carboxylic acid derivatives derived from Aristolochia spp, is associated with nephrotoxin and carcinogen. AA-DNA adducts induced by reductive metabolic activation of AA were detected in tissues of animals and in patients exposed to AA. The DNA adducts were generally used as biomarkers in toxicological study of AA. In this short review, quantitative analysis of AA-DNA adducts in various in vitro and in vivo systems by using 32P-postlabelling assay, HPLC-UV, HPLC-radiation monitor, HPLC-FLD, HPLC-ESI/MS and UPLC-MS/MS methods is discussed. The distribution of AA-DNA adducts in various tissues is also summarized.