In genetics

Genetics

Genetics , a discipline of biology, is the science of genes, heredity, and variation in living organisms....

, genotoxicity describes a deleterious action on a cell's genetic material affecting its integrity. This includes both certain chemical compound

Chemical compound

A chemical compound is a pure chemical substance consisting of two or more different chemical elements that can be separated into simpler substances by chemical reactions. Chemical compounds have a unique and defined chemical structure; they consist of a fixed ratio of atoms that are held together...

s and certain types of radiation

Radiation

In physics, radiation is a process in which energetic particles or energetic waves travel through a medium or space. There are two distinct types of radiation; ionizing and non-ionizing...

.

Typical genotoxins like aromatic amine

Aromatic amine

An aromatic amine is an amine with an aromatic substituent - that is -NH2, -NH- or nitrogen group attached to an aromatic hydrocarbon, whose structure usually contains one or more benzene rings. Aniline is the simplest example....

s are believed to cause mutations because they are nucleophilic and form strong covalent bond

Covalent bond

A covalent bond is a form of chemical bonding that is characterized by the sharing of pairs of electrons between atoms. The stable balance of attractive and repulsive forces between atoms when they share electrons is known as covalent bonding....

s with DNA

DNA

Deoxyribonucleic acid is a nucleic acid that contains the genetic instructions used in the development and functioning of all known living organisms . The DNA segments that carry this genetic information are called genes, but other DNA sequences have structural purposes, or are involved in...

 resulting with the formation of Aromatic Amine-DNA adducts, preventing accurate replication.

Genotoxins affecting sperm and eggs can pass genetic changes down to descendants who have never been exposed to the genotoxin.