Ellipticine, 9-hydroxyellipticine (3), and its corresponding methoacetate 8 were shown to produce DNA double and single strand breaks in LE10 cells exposed to these dr~ gs.~?~ The double strand breaks resulting from the interaction with mammalian topoisomerase I1 were reversible in L1210 cell cultures and in cell-free 9-Hydroxyellipticine (3) is the major metabolite of ellipticine in the rat. lOJ1 LePecq et a1. 2 have shown that this metabolite is ...