Major routes of metabolism of the food-borne carcinogen 2-amino-3,8-dimethylimidazo[4,5-f]quinoxaline in the rat

The metabolic fate of 2-amino-3,8-dimethylimidazo[4,5-f] quinoxaline (MeIQx), a carcinogen formed in cooked meat and fish, has been investigated in male Sprague-Dawley rats. Five metabolites were recovered from bile of animals given an intragastric dose of [2-14C]MeIQx. These accounted for nearly all of the radioactivity in bile. The chemical structures of these metabolites were elucidated by proton NMR, UV and mass spectroscopy. Three...