Editing Ames test (section)

{{Short description|Biological testing method}}
{{about|the test of chemicals for mutagenicity|the purification of metals|Ames process}}
[[File:Ames test.svg|500px|right|thumb|Ames test procedure]]
The '''Ames test''' is a widely employed method that uses [[bacteria]] to test whether a given chemical can cause [[mutation]]s in the [[DNA]] of the test organism. More formally, it is a [[bioassay|biological assay]] to assess the [[mutagenic]] potential of chemical compounds.<ref name="pmid11113466">{{cite journal | vauthors = Mortelmans K, Zeiger E | title = The Ames Salmonella/microsome mutagenicity assay | journal = Mutation Research | volume = 455 | issue = 1–2 | pages = 29–60 | date = November 2000 | pmid = 11113466 | doi = 10.1016/S0027-5107(00)00064-6 | bibcode = 2000MRFMM.455...29M }}</ref> A positive test indicates that the chemical is mutagenic and therefore may act as a [[carcinogen]], because cancer is often linked to [[mutation]]. The test serves as a quick and convenient assay to estimate the carcinogenic potential of a compound because standard carcinogen assays on mice and rats are time-consuming (taking two to three years to complete) and expensive. However, false-positives and false-negatives are known.<ref name="urlAmes Test: Encyclopedia of Public Health">{{cite encyclopedia | title = Ames Test | author = Charnley G |year = 2002 | encyclopedia = Encyclopedia of Public Health | publisher = eNotes.com |url=http://www.enotes.com/public-health-encyclopedia/ames-test |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20090204185058/http://www.enotes.com/public-health-encyclopedia/ames-test| archive-date= 4 February 2009 | url-status=dead |access-date=2014-05-02}}</ref>

The procedure was described in a series of papers in the early 1970s by [[Bruce Ames]] and his group at the [[University of California, Berkeley]].<ref name="ames" /><ref name="ames 1" /><ref name="ames 2" /><ref name="ames 3" />