Unwinding Method Research Articles

DNA damage in mouse and rat liver by caprolactam and benzoin, evaluated with three different methods

Benzoin and caprolactam were examined for their capability of inducing alkaline DNA fragmentation in mouse and rat liver DNA after treatment in vivo. Three different methods were used. With the alkaline elution technique we measured an effect presumably related to the conformation of the DNA coil. With a viscometric and a fluorometric unwinding method we measured an effect presumably related to the number of unwinding points in DNA. For both compounds only the alkaline elution technique was clearly positive. The results suggest that both caprolactam and benzoin can induce an important change in the conformation of the DNA coil without inducing true breaks in DNA.

Induction of DNA damage in Ehrlich ascites tumour cells by exposure to eupatoriopicrin

The sesquiterpene lactone eupatoriopicrin (EUP) from Eupatorium cannabinum L. has been shown to be cytotoxic in a glutathione (GSH)-dependent way. In order to assess possible DNA damage as a cause for cell death, the study reported was initiated. After 2 hr incubation of Ehrlich ascites tumour cells with EUP, the DNA damage, determined by the use of an alkaline DNA unwinding method, followed by hydroxylapatite column chromatography of degradated DNA, was observed at concentrations only slightly higher than those causing cell death in a clonogenic assay. The amount of EUP, requested to demonstrate DNA damage after a 24-hr post-incubation period lay within the concentration range that was effective in the clonogenic assay (1–10 μg/ml). Glutathione (GSH) depletion of the cells to about 99%, by use of buthionine sulphoximine (BSO), enhanced the extent of DNA damage. It is concluded that EUP-induced DNA damage may play a role in the observed cytotoxicity.

Using the DNA alkaline unwinding assay to detect DNA damage in laboratory and environmentally exposed cells and tissues

The DNA alkaline unwinding assay is being evaluated for use in the detection of DNA damage in marine animals exposed to environmental pollutants. In preliminary work, DNA unwinding methods were used with in vitro cell systems to demonstrate DNA strand breaks. Cultured mammalian fibroblasts and sperm from marine fish and invertebrates ( Pseudopleuronectes, Arbacia and Mytilus) showed concentration-dependent increases in DNA strand breaks after brief exposures to alkylating agents. DNA unwinding methods were also used on DNA extracted from marine animals injected with genotoxicants and from animals exposed in situ at an estuarine site. Gills from blue mussels caged at the New Bedford Harbor Superfund Site (MA, USA) highly contaminated with many organic (e.g. PCBs) and inorganic contaminants, were also examined. A significant increase in DNA strand breaks was seen in gill tissues of animals held in the contaminated site for as little as 3 days. Although not as severe, an increase in strand breaks was also seen in animals held at the control site for 28 days. This apparent damage may have resulted from low-level contamination and/or from generally poor tissue condition. These results suggest that DNA alkaline unwinding results from controlled experiments using cells briefly exposed to toxicants can be used to identify DNA strand breaking agents. While whole-animal exposures to toxicants may affect DNA integrity, unwinding results may not specifically reflect genotoxicity.

Induction and Subsequent Repair of DNA Damage by Fast Neutrons in Cultured Mammalian Cells

The induction and repair of DNA damage were studied by a DNA unwinding method in mouse L5178Y cells exposed to fast neutrons. DNA lesions induced by fast neutrons were classified into three types from their repair profiles: fast-reparable breaks (T1/2 = 3-5 min), slow-reparable breaks (T1/2 = 70 min), and nonreparable breaks. The repair rates of both fast-reparable and slow-reparable breaks were almost the same as those of corresponding damage induced by low-LET radiation. Neutrons induced a smaller amount of fast-reparable damage, an almost equal amount of slow-reparable damage, and a larger amount of nonreparable damage than those induced by equal doses of gamma rays or X rays. RBEs for fast- and slow-reparable damage were 0.3 and 0.9, respectively. The RBE for nonreparable damage was dose dependent and was 1.4 at the level of 100 breaks/10(12) Da DNA. Among the three types of lesions, only the nonreparable damage levels correlated with the linear-quadratic shape of the survival curves and with the enhanced killing effectiveness of neutrons (RBE = 1.7 at D0).

Vortex unwinding in a turbulent boundary layer

The vortex unwinding method is used as a tool in performing vortex cancellation in a turbulent boundary layer. Sufficient reduction in the isotach variation was achieved to verify the usefulness of this technique, for the cases of both wall turbulence control and horseshoe vortex alleviation. More detailed measurements of vortex strength and position improve the optimization process and increase the amount of vortex unwinding.

DNA strand breaks induced by low-energy heavy ions.

The DNA unwinding method was used to estimate DNA breakage in Chinese hamster cells exposed to heavy ions with LET in the range of 750-5000 keV/micron. Comparison of the primary induced unwinding rate per dose unit for ions with various track diameters but similar LET showed a pronounced influence on the track diameter. Low-energy ions, producing thin tracks with diameters (penumbra) in the submicrometer region, were almost two orders of magnitude less efficient than more energetic ions producing tracks with diameters of several micrometers and about three orders of magnitude less efficient than X-rays. For the thin tracks, clustering of breaks was indicated by comparison of the DNA unwinding rates in two different alkaline solutions. The results indicate that the unwinding rate cannot be used as a good measurement for DNA breaks in this case. The residual unwinding remaining after 4 h of repair at 37 degrees C correlated well with the ability of the various ions to produce cell-killing.

DNA repair kinetics after low doses of X-rays: A comparison of results obtained by the unwinding and nucleoid sedimentation methods

A re-examination of some of our previously published and our more recent data has led us to reconsider the interpretation of the kinetics of the repair of DNA single-strand breaks in mammalian cells. We investigated the detailed kinetics of this repair after low doses of X-rays in mouse Ehrlich ascites tumour cells grown in suspension cultures, using two different methods that measures strand breaks in DNA: the unwinding method and the ‘nucleoid’ sedimentation method. The results thus obtained, either under weak alkaline conditions (unwinding method) or under neutral conditions (‘nucleoid’ sedimentation method) both showed an initial fast repair component, with a half time, t 1 2 of 5–6 min, followed by a component between 10 and 30 min after irradiation, in which the kinetic curves levelled off or turned upwards, indicating the possibility of the introduction of new breaks into the DNA. We propose that these additional DNA strand breaks may arise by incision of the DNA by endonucleases at base-damaged sites, and we therefore suggest that the previous interpretation of the kinetics of DNA single-strand break repair in terms of two or more first-order repair components may have been an approximation. The measured kinetics of strand break after X-irradiation probably represent a mixture of break ligation and incision, and therefore correspondingly deviate from first order, especially 10–30 min after exposure to X-rays.

Enzymatic restriction of mammalian cell DNA using Pvu II and Bam H1: evidence for the double-strand break origin of chromosomal aberrations.

Permeabilized Chinese hamster cells were treated with the restriction enzymes Pvu II and Bam H1 which generate blunt-ended with cohesive-ended double-strand breaks in the DNA respectively. Cells were then allowed to progress to the first mitosis, where chromosomal aberrations were scored. It was found that blunt-ended double-strand breaks induced both chromosome and chromatid aberrations of exchange and deletion types, including a high frequency of tri-radials. The total aberration frequency at high enzyme concentrations was more than ten times the control background frequency. Treatment with Bam H1 on the other hand did not induce aberrations above the background rate. This may indicate that the cohesive ends generated by this enzyme may be easily repaired by the cell due to the stabilization of the hydrogen bonding at the site of the double-strand break. Measurements using the unwinding method showed that the enzymes caused strand breaks in the DNA of permeabilized cells, and an approximate X-ray dose equivalent of the restriction-enzyme-induced breaks could be calculated. This indicated that restriction-induced blunt-ended double-strand breaks are relatively inefficient in causing chromosomal aberrations. This may be because of the presence of 'clean ends' at the site of a double-strand break, which may be repaired by ligation. The method of introducing restriction enzymes into cells opens up a new model approach for the study of the conversion of double-strand breaks into chromosome aberrations.

The effects of 9-beta-D-arabinofuranosyladenine on the repair of DNA strand breaks in X-irradiated Ehrlich ascites tumour cells.

The effects of the DNA synthesis inhibitor 9-beta-D-arabinofuranosyladenine (beta-ara A), a nucleoside analogue of desoxyadenine, on repair of DNA single and double strand breaks (ssb and dsb) were investigated in X-irradiated Ehrlich ascites tumour cells. Repair of ssb was followed using the unwinding method, and repair of dsb was measured with both the unwinding and the neutral sucrose centrifugation methods. Repair of ssb was inhibited in the presence of beta-ara A; however, even at high concentrations some repair took place. It is suggested that this proportion of the breaks (about 30 per cent) are joined by polynucleotide ligase, and do not require insertion of nucleotides. Dsb repair was strongly inhibited by beta-ara A, the inhibition being complete at high concentrations. It seems likely therefore that dsb repair has an absolute requirement for DNA polymerization. When cells were treated with beta-ara A (200 mumols/1, 2 hours) after irradiation dsb repair was inhibited; however, when the drug was washed away, repair of dsb returned. At 6 hours more breaks were found to have persisted in beta-ara A treated cells than in the untreated controls. Cells treated after X-irradiation with beta-ara A for 7 hours at 120 mumols/1 in conditioned medium and afterwards in fresh medium free of beta-ara A for 24 hours showed a higher number of residual dsb than control cells. It is suggested that these residual dsb may be relevant to the increased killing effect caused by adding beta-ara A to X-irradiated cultures.

Some features of the unwinding of glass-reinforced plastic rings

The reasons for the nonhomogeneity of the material of wound glass-reinforced plastic tubes are discussed. Formulas are given for constructing the shrinkage or temperature stress diagrams for nonhomogeneous tubes by the unwinding method.