Oligonucleotides with bistranded abasic sites interfere with substrate binding and catalysis by human apurinic/apyrimidinic endonuclease

DNA Damage Response and Repair in Boron Neutron Capture Therapy

Boron neutron capture therapy (BNCT) is an approach to the radiotherapy of solid tumors that was first outlined in the 1930s but has attracted considerable attention recently with the advent of a new generation of neutron sources. In BNCT, tumor cells accumulate 10B atoms that react with epithermal neutrons, producing energetic α particles and 7Li atoms that damage the cell's genome. The damage inflicted by BNCT appears not to be easily repairable and is thus lethal for the cell; however, the molecular events underlying the action of BNCT remain largely unaddressed. In this review, the chemistry of DNA damage during BNCT is outlined, the major mechanisms of DNA break sensing and repair are summarized, and the specifics of the repair of BNCT-induced DNA lesions are discussed.

Unusual interaction of human apurinic/apyrimidinic endonuclease 1 (APE1) with abasic sites via the Schiff-base-dependent mechanism

Clustered apurinic/apyrimidinic (AP) sites are more cytotoxic than isolated AP lesions because double strand breaks (DSB) can be formed during repair of closely positioned bistranded AP sites. Formation of DSB due to simultaneous cleavage of bistranded AP sites may be regulated by proteins specifically interacting with this complex lesion. A set of AP DNA duplexes containing AP sites in both strands in different mutual orientation (BS-AP DNAs) was used for search in the extracts of human cells proteins specifically recognizing clustered AP sites. A protein, which formed the Schiff-base-dependent covalent products having an apparent molecular mass of 50 kDa with the subset of BS-AP DNAs, was identified by mass spectrometry as apurinic/apyrimidinic endonuclease 1 (APE1). The identity of trapped protein was confirmed by Western blot analysis with anti-APE1 antibodies. Purified recombinant human APE1 is also capable of forming the 50 kDa-adducts with efficiency of BS-AP DNAs cross-linking to APE1 being dependent on the mutual orientation of AP sites. In spite of formation of the Schiff-base-dependent intermediate, which is prerequisite for the β-elimination mechanism, APE1 is unable to cleave AP sites. APE1 lacking the first 34 amino acids at the N-terminus, unlike wild type enzyme, is unable to form cross-links with BS-AP DNAs that testifies to the involvement of disordered N-terminal extension, which is enriched in lysine residues, in the interaction with AP sites. The yield of APE1-AP DNA cross-links was found to correlate with the enzyme amount in the extracts estimated by the immunochemical approach; therefore the BS-AP DNA-probes can be useful for comparative analysis of APE1 content in cell extracts.

Processing of the abasic sites clustered with the benzo[a]pyrene adducts by the base excision repair enzymes

The major enzyme in eukaryotic cells that catalyzes the cleavage of apurinic/apyrimidinic (AP or abasic) sites is AP endonuclease 1 (APE1) that cleaves the phosphodiester bond on the 5'-side of AP sites. We found that the efficiency of AP site cleavage by APE1 was affected by the benzo[a]pyrenyl-DNA adduct (BPDE-dG) in the opposite strand. AP sites directly opposite of the modified dG or shifted toward the 5' direction were hydrolyzed by APE1 with an efficiency moderately lower than the AP site in the control DNA duplex, whereas AP sites shifted toward the 3' direction were hydrolyzed significantly less efficiently. For all DNA structures except DNA with the AP site shifted by 3 nucleotides in the 3' direction (AP₊₃-BP-DNA), hydrolysis was more efficient in the case of (+)-trans-BPDE-dG. Using molecular dynamic simulation, we have shown that in the complex of APE1 with the AP₊₃-BP-DNA, the BP residue is located within the DNA bend induced by APE1 and contacts the amino acids in the enzyme catalytic center and the catalytic metal ion. The geometry of the APE1 active site is perturbed more significantly by the trans-isomer of BPDE-dG that intercalates into the APE1-DNA complex near the cleaved phosphodiester bond. The ability of DNA polymerases β (Polβ), λ and ι to catalyze gap-filling synthesis in cooperation with APE1 was also analyzed. Polβ was shown to inhibit the 3'→5' exonuclease activity of APE1 when both enzymes were added simultaneously and to insert the correct nucleotide into the gap arising after AP site hydrolysis. Therefore, further evidence for the functional cooperation of APE1 and Polβ in base excision repair was obtained.

Repair efficiency of clustered abasic sites by APE1 in nucleosome core particles is sequence and position dependent

DNA sequence context and nucleosomal positioning guide the repair efficiency of clustered abasic sites by APE1 enzyme.

Direct observation of preferential processing of clustered abasic DNA damages with APE1 in TATA box and CpG island by reaction kinetics and fluorescence dynamics

Sequences like the core element of TATA box and CpG island are frequently encountered in the genome and related to transcription. The fate of repair of clustered abasic sites in such sequences of genomic importance is largely unknown. This prompted us to investigate the sequence dependence of cleavage efficiency of APE1 enzyme at abasic sites within the core sequences of TATA box and CpG island using fluorescence dynamics and reaction kinetics. Simultaneous molecular dynamics study through steady state and time resolved fluorescence spectroscopy using unique ethidium bromide dye release assay confirmed an elevated amount of abasic site cleavage of the TATA box sequence as compared to the core CpG island. Reaction kinetics showed that catalytic efficiency of APE1 for abasic site cleavage of core CpG island sequence was ∼4 times lower as compared to that of the TATA box. Higher value of Km was obtained from the core CpG island sequence than the TATA box sequence. This suggests a greater binding effect of APE1 enzyme on TATA sequence that signifies a prominent role of the sequence context of the DNA substrate. Evidently, a faster response from APE1 was obtained for clustered abasic damage repair of TATA box core sequences than CpG island consensus sequences. The neighboring bases of the abasic sites in the complementary DNA strand were found to have significant contribution in addition to the flanking bases in modulating APE1 activity. The repair refractivity of the bistranded clustered abasic sites arise from the slow processing of the second abasic site, consequently resulting in decreased overall production of potentially lethal double strand breaks.

Mechanistic studies on histone catalyzed cleavage of apyrimidinic/apurinic sites in nucleosome core particles

Duplex DNA containing an apurinic/apyrimidinic (AP) lesion undergoes cleavage significantly more rapidly in nucleosome core particles (NCPs) than it does when free. The mechanism of AP cleavage within NCPs was studied through independently generating lesions within them. AP mediated DNA cleavage within NCPs is initiated by DNA-protein cross-link (DPC(un)) formation followed by β-elimination to give DPCs containing cleaved DNA (DPC(cl)). Hydrolysis of DPC(cl) produces a DNA single strand break (SSB). C2-dideuteration of AP showed that deprotonation from this position is involved in the rate-determining step. Experiments utilizing NCPs containing mutated histone H4 proteins indicated that lysine residues in the amino terminal tail are involved in both DPC formation and β-elimination steps. Lysines 16 and 20 seem to play a greater role in reacting with AP at superhelical location 1.5, but other amino acids (e.g., lysines 5, 8, and 12) compensate in their absence. The mechanism of rapid double strand breaks in bistranded, clustered AP lesions was studied by independently preparing reaction intermediates within model NCPs. A single strand break on one strand enhances the cleavage of a proximal AP on the opposite strand.

Interaction of poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase 1 with apurinic/apyrimidinic sites within clustered DNA damage

To study the interaction of poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase 1 (PARP1) with apurinic/apyrimidinic sites (AP sites) within clustered damages, DNA duplexes were created that contained an AP site in one strand and one of its analogs situated opposite the AP site in the complementary strand. Residues of 3-hydroxy-2-hydroxymethyltetrahydrofuran (THF), diethylene glycol (DEG), and decane-1,10-diol (DD) were used. It is shown for the first time that apurinic/apyrimidinic endonuclease 1 (APE1) cleaves the DNA strands at the positions of DEG and DD residues, and this suggests these groups as AP site analogs. Insertion of DEG and DD residues opposite an AP site decreased the rate of AP site hydrolysis by APE1 similarly to the effect of the THF residue, which is a well-known analog of the AP site, and this allowed us to use such AP DNAs to imitate DNA with particular types of clustered damages. PARP1, isolated and in cell extracts, efficiently interacted with AP DNA with analogs of AP sites producing a Schiff base. PARP1 competes with APE1 upon interaction with AP DNAs, decreasing the level of its cross-linking with AP DNA, and inhibits hydrolysis of AP sites within AP DNAs containing DEG and THF residues. Using glutaraldehyde as a linking agent, APE1 is shown to considerably decrease the amount of AP DNA-bound PARP1 dimer, which is the catalytically active form of this enzyme. Autopoly(ADP-ribosyl)ation of PARP1 decreased its inhibitory effect. The possible involvement of PARP1 and its automodification in the regulation of AP site processing within particular clustered damages is discussed.

Main factors providing specificity of repair enzymes

Specific and nonspecific DNA complex formation with human uracil-DNA glycosylase, 8-oxoguanine-DNA glycosylase, and apurine/apyrimidine endonuclease, as well as with E. coli 8-oxoguanine-DNA glycosylase and RecA protein was analyzed using the method of stepwise increase in DNA-ligand complexity. It is shown that high affinity of these enzymes to any DNA (10(-4)-10(-8) M) is provided by a large number of weak additive contacts mainly with DNA internucleoside phosphate groups and in a less degree with bases of nucleotide links "covered" by protein globules. Enzyme interactions with specific DNA links are comparable in efficiency with weak unspecific contacts and provide only for one-two orders of affinity (10(-1)-10(-2) M), but these contacts are extremely important at stages of DNA and enzyme structural adaptation and catalysis proper. Only in the case of specific DNA individual for each enzyme alterations in DNA structure provide for efficient adjustment of reacting enzyme atoms and DNA orbitals with accuracy up to 10-15° and, as a result, for high reaction rate. Upon transition from nonspecific to specific DNA, reaction rate (k(cat)) increases by 4-8 orders of magnitude. Thus, stages of DNA and enzyme structural adaptation as well as catalysis proper are the basis of specificity of repair enzymes.

Measurement of oxidatively-induced clustered DNA lesions using a novel adaptation of single cell gel electrophoresis (comet assay)

The two basic groups of complex DNA damage are double-strand breaks (DSBs) and non-DSB oxidatively-induced clustered DNA lesions (OCDLs). The single-cell gel electrophoresis (SCGE) or comet assay has been widely used for the detection of low levels of various types of DNA lesions including single-strand breaks (SSBs), DSBs, and oxidized bases per individual cell. There are limited data on the use of the comet assay for the detection of non-DSB clustered DNA lesions using different repair enzymes as enzymatic probes. This unit discusses a novel adaptation of the comet assay used to measure these unique types of lesions. Until now OCDL yields have been measured using primarily pulsed-field agarose gel electrophoresis. The advantages offered by the current approach are: (1) measurement of OCDL levels per individual cell; (2) use of a small number of cells (∼10,000) and relatively low doses of ionizing radiation (1 to 2 Gy) or low levels of oxidative stress, which are not compatible with standard agarose gel electrophoresis; and finally, (3) the assay is fast and allows direct comparison with pulsed-field gel electrophoresis results.

Chinese hamster apurinic/apyrimidinic endonuclease (chAPE1) expressed in sf9 cells reveals that its endonuclease activity is regulated by phosphorylation

Apurinic/apyrimidinic endonuclease (APE), an essential DNA repair enzyme, initiates the base excision repair pathway by creating a nick 5' to an abasic site in double-stranded DNA. Although the Chinese hamster ovary cells remain an important model for DNA repair studies, the Chinese hamster APE (chAPE1) has not been studied in vitro in respect to its kinetic characteristics. Here we report the results of a kinetic study performed on cloned and overexpressed enzyme in sf9 cells. The kinetic parameters were fully compatible with the broad range of kinetic parameters reported for the human enzyme. However, the activity measures depended on the time point of the culture. We applied inductivity coupled plasma spectrometry to measure the phosphorylation level of chAPE1. Our data showed that a higher phosphorylation of chAPE1 in the expression host was correlated to a lower endonuclease activity. The phosphorylation of a higher activity batch of chAPE1 by casein kinase II decreased the endonuclease activity, and the dephosphorylation of chAPE1 by lambda phosphatase increased the endonuclease activity. The exonuclease activity of chAPE1 was not observed in our kinetic analysis. The results suggest that noticeable divergence in reported activity levels for the human APE1 endonuclease might be caused by unaccounted phosphorylation. Our data also demonstrate that only selected kinases and phosphatases exert regulatory effects on chAPE1 endonuclease activity, suggesting further that this regulatory mechanism may function in vivo to turn on and off the function of this important enzyme in different organisms.

Formation of clustered DNA damage after high-LET irradiation: a review

Radiation can cause as well as cure cancer. The risk of developing radiation-induced cancer has traditionally been estimated from cancer incidence among survivors of the atomic bombs in Hiroshima and Nagasaki.(1)) These data provide the best estimate of human cancer risk over the dose range for low linear energy transfer (LET) radiations, such as X- or gamma-rays. The situation of estimating the real biological effects becomes even more difficult in the case of high LET particles encountered in space or as the result of domestic exposure to alpha-particles from radon gas emitters or other radioactive emitters like uranium-238. Complex DNA damage, i.e., the signature of high-LET radiations comprises of closely spaced DNA lesions forming a cluster of DNA damage. The two basic groups of complex DNA damage are double strand breaks (DSBs) and non-DSB oxidative clustered DNA lesions (OCDL). Theoretical analysis and experimental evidence suggest an increased complexity and severity of complex DNA damage with increasing LET (linear energy transfer) and a high mutagenic or carcinogenic potential. Data available on the formation of clustered DNA damage (DSBs and OCDL) by high-LET radiations are often controversial suggesting a variable response to dose and type of radiation. The chemical nature and cellular repair mechanisms of complex DNA damage have been much less characterized than those of isolated DNA lesions like an oxidized base or a single strand break especially in the case of high-LET radiation. This review will focus on the induction of clustered DNA damage by high-LET radiations presenting the earlier and recent relative data.

Processing of DNA damage clusters in human cells: current status of knowledge

Eukaryotic cells exposed to DNA damaging agents activate important defensive pathways by inducing multiple proteins involved in DNA repair, cell cycle checkpoint control and potentially apoptosis. After the acceptance of the hypothesis that oxidatively generated clustered DNA lesions (OCDL: closely spaced DNA lesions) can be induced even by low doses of ionizing radiation or even endogenously, and significant advances have been made in the understanding of the biochemistry underlying the repair of closely spaced DNA lesions, many questions still remain unanswered. The major questions that have to be answered in the near future are: 1) how human cells process these types of DNA damage if they repair them at all, 2) under what conditions a double strand break (DSB) may be created during the processing of two closely spaced DNA lesions and 3) what type of repair protein interactions govern the processing of complex DNA damage? The data existing so far on human cells and tissues are very limited and in some cases contradicting. All of them though agree however on the major importance of gaining mechanistic insights on the pathways used by the cell to confront and process complex DNA damage located in a small DNA volume and the need of more in depth analytical studies. We selectively review recently-obtained data on the processing of non-DSB DNA damage clusters in human cells and tissues and discuss the current status of knowledge in the field.

Induction and processing of oxidative clustered DNA lesions in 56Fe-ion-irradiated human monocytes

Space and cosmic radiation is characterized by energetic heavy ions of high linear energy transfer (LET). Although both low- and high-LET radiations can create oxidative clustered DNA lesions and double-strand breaks (DSBs), the local complexity of oxidative clustered DNA lesions tends to increase with increasing LET. We irradiated 28SC human monocytes with doses from 0-10 Gy of (56)Fe ions (1.046 GeV/ nucleon, LET = 148 keV/microm) and determined the induction and processing of prompt DSBs and oxidative clustered DNA lesions using pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) and Number Average Length Analysis (NALA). The (56)Fe ions produced decreased yields of DSBs (10.9 DSB Gy(-1) Gbp(-1)) and clusters (1 DSB: approximately 0.8 Fpg clusters: approximately 0.7 Endo III clusters: approximately 0.5 Endo IV clusters) compared to previous results with (137)Cs gamma rays. The difference in the relative biological effectiveness (RBE) of the measured and predicted DSB yields may be due to the formation of spatially correlated DSBs (regionally multiply damaged sites) which result in small DNA fragments that are difficult to detect with the PFGE assay. The processing data suggest enhanced difficulty compared with gamma rays in the processing of DSBs but not clusters. At the same time, apoptosis is increased compared to that seen with gamma rays. The enhanced levels of apoptosis observed after exposure to (56)Fe ions may be due to the elimination of cells carrying high levels of persistent DNA clusters that are removed only by cell death and/or "splitting" during DNA replication.

Role of active site tyrosines in dynamic aspects of DNA binding by AP endonuclease

AP endonuclease (AP endo), a key enzyme in repair of abasic sites in DNA, makes a single nick 5' to the phosphodeoxyribose of an abasic site (AP-site). We recently proposed a novel mechanism, whereby the enzyme uses a key tyrosine (Tyr(171)) to directly attack the scissile phosphate of the AP-site. We showed that loss of the tyrosyl hydroxyl from Tyr(171) resulted in dramatic diminution in enzymatic efficiency. Here we extend the previous work to compare binding/recognition of AP endo to oligomeric DNA with and without an AP-site by wild type enzyme and several tyrosine mutants including Tyr(128), Tyr(171) and Tyr(269). We used single turnover and electrophoretic mobility shift assays. As expected, binding to DNA with an AP-site is more efficient than binding to DNA without one. Unlike catalytic cleavage by AP endo, which requires both hydroxyl and aromatic moieties of Tyr(171), the ability to bind DNA efficiently without an AP-site is independent of an aromatic moiety at position 171. However, the ability to discriminate efficiently between DNA with and without an AP-site requires tyrosine at position 171. Thus, AP endo requires a tyrosine at the active site for the properties that enable it to behave as an efficient, processive endonuclease.

XRCC1 interactions with base excision repair DNA intermediates

Abasic (AP) sites in DNA arise either spontaneously, or through glycosylase-catalyzed excision of damaged bases. Their removal by the base excision repair (BER) pathway avoids their mutagenic and cytotoxic consequences. XRCC1 coordinates and facilitates single-strand break (SSB) repair and BER in mammalian cells. We report that XRCC1, through its NTD and BRCT1 domains, has affinity for several DNA intermediates in BER. As shown by its capacity to form a covalent complex via Schiff base, XRCC1 binds AP sites. APE1 suppresses binding of XRCC1 to unincised AP sites however, affinity was higher when the DNA carried an AP-lyase- or APE1-incised AP site. The AP site binding capacity of XRCC1 is enhanced by the presence of strand interruptions in the opposite strand. Binding of XRCC1 to BER DNA intermediates could play an important role to warrant the accurate repair of damaged bases, AP sites or SSBs, in particular in the context of clustered DNA damage.

Mismatch repair converts AID-instigated nicks to double-strand breaks for antibody class-switch recombination

Mismatch repair (MMR) proteins are important for antibody class-switch recombination (CSR), but their roles are unknown. We propose a model for the function of MMR in CSR in which MMR proteins convert single-strand nicks instigated by activation-induced cytidine deaminase (AID) into the double-strand breaks (DSBs) that are required for CSR. This model does not invoke any novel functions for MMR but simply posits that, owing to numerous single-strand nicks in the switch (S) regions of both DNA strands, when MMR proteins are recruited by U:G mismatches, they excise one strand of DNA and soon reach a nick on the opposite strand. This halts excision activity and creates a DSB. This model explains why B cells that lack either S mu and MSH2 or UNG and MSH2 cannot undergo CSR.

Characterization of a complex 125I-induced DNA double-strand break: implications for repair

PURPOSE

To examine the role of radiation-induced DNA double-strand break (DSB) structural organization in DSB repair, and characterize the structural features of 125I-induced DSBs that may impact the repair process.

METHODS

Plasmid DNA was linearized by sequence-specific targeting using an 125I-labeled triplex-forming oligonucleotide (TFO). Following isolation from agarose gels, base damage structures associated with the DSB ends in plasmids linearized by the 125I-TFO were characterized by probing with the E. coli DNA damage-specific endonuclease and DNA-glycosylases, endonuclease IV (endo IV), endonuclease III (endo III), and formamidopyrimidine-glycosylase (Fpg).

RESULTS

Plasmid DNA containing DSBs produced by the high-LET-like effects of 125I-TFO has been shown to support at least 2-fold lower end joining than gamma-ray linearized plasmid, and this may be a consequence of the highly complex structure expected near an 125I-induced DSB end. Therefore, to determine if a high density of base damage exists proximal to the DSBs produced by 125I-TFOs, short fragments of DNA recovered from the DSB end of 125I-TFO-linearized plasmid were enzymatically probed. Base damage and AP site clustering was demonstrated within 3 bases downstream and 7 bases upstream of the targeted base. Furthermore, the pattern and extent of base damage varied depending upon the presence or absence of 2 M DMSO during irradiation.

CONCLUSIONS

125I-TFO-induced DSBs exhibit a high degree of base damage clustering proximal to the DSB end. At least 60% of the nucleotides within 10 bp of the 125I decay site are sensitive to cleavage by endo IV, endo III, or Fpg following damage accumulation in the presence of DMSO, whereas > or = 80% are sensitive in the absence of DMSO. The high degree of base damage clustering associated with the 125I-TFO-induced DSB end may be a major factor leading to its negligible in vitro repair by the non-homologous end-joining pathway (NHEJ).

Novel role of tyrosine in catalysis by human AP endonuclease 1

Apurinic/apyrimidinic endonuclease (AP endo, HAP1) recognizes abasic sites in ds DNA and makes a single nick in the backbone 5' to the abasic site. In this report we examine the roles of three conserved tyrosine residues in close proximity to the active site. We show that Tyr(128) and Tyr(269), which interact upstream and downstream of the abasic site, respectively, are involved in recognition and binding of abasic site-containing double stranded DNA. However, the two residues are not equivalent, as their effects are differentiated by changes in salt concentration. In sharp contrast, Tyr(171) is directly involved in catalysis as well as binding. Y171F, Y171H, and Y171A all show decreased catalytic efficiencies 25,000-50,000-fold from the WT enzyme. Both imidazole and basic pH markedly stimulate the WT enzyme. Imidazole stimulates Tyr(171) mutant enzymes when tyrosine is also present but basic pH eliminates remaining mutant activity. These results underscore the importance of tyrosines in AP endo catalysis. They render the current hypotheses regarding enzyme action unlikely and allow us to consider the possibility that the phenolate of Tyr(171) is the nucleophile that attacks the scissile phosphate.

Three-dimensional structure prediction of bovine AP lyase, BAP1: prediction of interaction with DNA and alterations as a result of Arg176-->Ala, Asp282-->Ala, and His308-->Asn mutations

BAP1 is an apurinic/apyrimidinic lyase (AP lyase) that plays an important role in the repair of DNA damage. The present study deals with the prediction of the 3D structure of bovine AP lyase based on its sequence homology with human AP lyase. The predicted 3D model of bovine AP1 shows remarkable similarity with human endonuclease in the overall 3D fold. However, significant differences in the model and the X-ray structure were located at some of the important sites. We have analyzed the active center of the enzyme and other sites that are involved in DNA repair. A number of amino acids bind the bases located in the major/minor grooves of DNA. An insertion of Arg176 in the major groove and Met270 in the minor groove caps the DNA bound enzyme's active site, stabilizing the extra helical AP site conformation and effectively locking the protein onto the AP-DNA. Three BAP1 mutants were also modeled and analyzed as regards the changes in the structure. Substitution of Arg176-->Ala leads to the loss of DNA binding whereas mutation of Asp282-->Ala and His308-->Asn leads to a decrease in the enzymatic activity.

Processing of bistranded abasic DNA clusters in gamma-irradiated human hematopoietic cells

Clustered DNA damages--two or more lesions on opposing strands and within one or two helical turns--are formed in cells by ionizing radiation or radiomimetic antitumor drugs. They are hypothesized to be difficult to repair, and thus are critical biological damages. Since individual abasic sites can be cytotoxic or mutagenic, abasic DNA clusters are likely to have significant cellular impact. Using a novel approach for distinguishing abasic clusters that are very closely spaced (putrescine cleavage) or less closely spaced (Nfo protein cleavage), we measured induction and processing of abasic clusters in 28SC human monocytes that were exposed to ionizing radiation. gamma-rays induced approximately 1 double-strand break: 1.3 putrescine-detected abasic clusters: 0.8 Nfo-detected abasic clusters. After irradiation, the 28SC cells rejoined double-strand breaks efficiently within 24 h. In contrast, in these cells, the levels of abasic clusters decreased very slowly over 14 days to background levels. In vitro repair experiments that used 28SC cell extracts further support the idea of slow processing of specific, closely spaced abasic clusters. Although some clusters were removed by active cellular repair, a substantial number was apparently decreased by 'splitting' during DNA replication and subsequent cell division. The existence of abasic clusters in 28SC monocytes, several days after irradiation suggests that they constitute persistent damages that could lead to mutation or cell killing.

Substrate specificity of human endonuclease III (hNTH1). Effect of human APE1 on hNTH1 activity

Base excision repair of oxidized pyrimidines in human DNA is initiated by the DNA N-glycosylase/apurinic/apyrimidinic (AP) lyase, human NTH1 (hNTH1), the homolog of Escherichia coli endonuclease III (Nth). In contrast to Nth, the DNA N-glycosylase activity of hNTH1 is 7-fold greater than its AP lyase activity when the DNA substrate contains a thymine glycol (Tg) opposite adenine (Tg:A) (Marenstein, D. R., Ocampo, M. T. A., Chan, M. K., Altamirano, A., Basu, A. K., Boorstein, R. J., Cunningham, R. P., and Teebor, G. W. (2001) J. Biol. Chem. 276, 21242-21249). When Tg is opposite guanine (Tg:G), the two activities are of the same specific activity as the AP lyase activity of hNTH1 against Tg:A (Ocampo, M. T. A., Chaung, W., Marenstein, D. R., Chan, M. K., Altamirano, A., Basu, A. K., Boorstein, R. J., Cunningham, R. P., and Teebor, G. W. (2002) Mol. Cell. Biol. 22, 6111-6121). We demonstrate here that hNTH1 was inhibited by the product of its DNA N-glycosylase activity directed against Tg:G, the AP:G site. In contrast, hNTH1 was not as inhibited by the AP:A site arising from release of Tg from Tg:A. Addition of human APE1 (AP endonuclease-1) increased dissociation of hNTH1 from the DNA N-glycosylase-generated AP:A site, resulting in abrogation of AP lyase activity and an increase in turnover of the DNA N-glycosylase activity of hNTH1. Addition of APE1 did not abrogate hNTH1 AP lyase activity against Tg:G. The stimulatory protein YB-1 (Marenstein et al.), added to APE1, resulted in an additive increase in both activities of hNTH1 regardless of base pairing. Tg:A is formed by oxidative attack on thymine opposite adenine. Tg:G is formed by oxidative attack on 5-methylcytosine opposite guanine (Zuo, S., Boorstein, R. J., and Teebor, G. W. (1995) Nucleic Acids Res. 23, 3239-3243). It is possible that the in vitro substrate selectivity of mammalian NTH1 and the concomitant selective stimulation of activity by APE1 are indicative of selective repair of oxidative damage in different regions of the genome.

Enzymology of the repair of free radicals-induced DNA damage

A number of intrinsic and extrinsic mutagens induce structural damage in cellular DNA. These DNA damages are cytotoxic, miscoding or both and are believed to be at the origin of cell lethality, tissue degeneration, ageing and cancer. In order to counteract immediately the deleterious effects of such lesions, leading to genomic instability, cells have evolved a number of DNA repair mechanisms including the direct reversal of the lesion, sanitation of the dNTPs pools, mismatch repair and several DNA excision pathways including the base excision repair (BER) nucleotide excision repair (NER) and the nucleotide incision repair (NIR). These repair pathways are universally present in living cells and extremely well conserved. This review is focused on the repair of lesions induced by free radicals and ionising radiation. The BER pathway removes most of these DNA lesions, although recently it was shown that other pathways would also be efficient in the removal of oxidised bases. In the BER pathway the process is initiated by a DNA glycosylase excising the modified and mismatched base by hydrolysis of the glycosidic bond between the base and the deoxyribose of the DNA, generating a free base and an abasic site (AP-site) which in turn is repaired since it is cytotoxic and mutagenic.

Sorting the consequences of ionizing radiation: processing of 8-oxoguanine/abasic site lesions

Clustered DNA damage is a hallmark of ionizing radiation. These complex lesions, composed of any combination of oxidized bases, abasic sites, or strand breaks within one helical turn, create a tremendous challenge for the base excision repair system, which must process the damage without generating cytotoxic double strand breaks (DSB). Clustered lesions affect the DNA incision activity of DNA glycosylases and AP endonucleases. Different levels of enzyme inhibition are dependent on lesion identity, orientation and separation. Very little is known about the simultaneous action of both classes of enzymes, which may lead to the creation of DSB. We have developed a novel substrate system of double-labeled hairpin duplexes, which allows the simultaneous determination of enzyme incision and formation of DBS. We use this system to study the processing of four clustered 8-oxoguanine/abasic site lesions by purified mouse Ogg1, human Ape1 and mouse embryonic stem cell nuclear extracts. Ape1 activity is least affected by the presence of a nearby oxidized base. In contrast, an abasic site inhibits the glycosylase and lyase activities of Ogg1 in an orientation-dependent manner. The combined action of both enzymes leads to the preferential formation of DSB with 5'-overhang ends. Processing of clusters by nuclear extracts displayed similar patter of enzyme inhibition and the same preference for avoiding double strand breaks with 3'-overhang ends.