Repair of chromosome and DNA breaks versus cell survival in Chinese hamster cells

Clonogenic and non-clonogenic parameters of cell survival were compared in irradiated Chinese hamster cells. Clonogenic survival, chromatid break and repair kinetics, as well as DNA damage and repair, were assessed in synchronized cells in different parts of the cell cycle. C2 chromatid damage and repair was examined in metaphase chromosomes of cells irradiated during S and G2 phase, treated with or without inhibitors of DNA repair. Bromodeoxyuridine labelling of S phase cells starting at the time of irradiation made it possible to determine precisely, while scoring metaphase chromosomes, whether cells were irradiated in mid S, late S, or G2 phases of the cycle. The results showed that chromatid breaks induced in S phase are efficiently repaired until the moment cells progress into G2, when repair stops abruptly. Chromatid damage in G2 phase is not repaired. On the other hand, DNA double-strand breaks are repaired in all phases of the cycle, even during G2 phase which has no concurrent chromatid break repair. Finally, there is no consistent correlation between chromatid damage and repair, DNA damage and repair, and cell survival, thus indicating that the interaction of different parameters of radiosensitivity must be better understood for them to be useful predictors of cell survival.

Cell cycle analysis of synchronized Chinese hamster cells using bromodeoxyuridine labeling and flow cytometry

Chinese hamster ovary cells were synchronized into purified populations of viable G1-, S-, G2-, and M-phase cells by a combination of methods, including growth arrest, aphidicolin block, cell cycle progression, mitotic shake-off, and centrifugal elutriation. The DNA content and bromodeoxyuridine (BrdUrd) labeling index were measured in each purified fraction by dual-parameter flow cytometry. The cell cycle distributions determined from the DNA measurements alone (single parameter) were compared with those calculated from both DNA and BrdUrd data (dual parameter). The results show that highly purified cells can be obtained using these methods, but the assessed purity depends on the method of cell cycle analysis. Using the single versus dual parameter measurement to determine cell cycle distributions gave similar results for most phases of the cell cycle, except for cells near the transition from G1- to S-phase and S- to G2-phase. There the BrdUrd labeling index determined by flow cytometry was more sensitive for detecting small amounts of DNA synthesis. As an alternative to flow cytometry, a simple method of measuring BrdUrd labeling index on cell smears was used and gave the same result as flow cytometry. Measuring both DNA content and DNA synthesis improves characterization of synchronized cell populations, especially at the transitions in and out of S-phase, when cells are undergoing dramatic shifts in biochemical activity.