Enzymatic digestion of DNA gamma-irradiated in aqueous solution separation of the digests by ion-exchange chromatography

Discrepancies in the measurement of UVC-induced 8-oxo-2'-deoxyguanosine: implications for the analysis of oxidative DNA damage

Ultraviolet (UV) light-induced indirect, oxidative damage to DNA has received increasing attention with respect to the mutagenic and carcinogenic effects of solar radiation. An oxidative lesion that has raised particular interest because of its qualitative and quantitative importance is 8-oxo-2'-deoxyguanosine. This deoxynucleoside lesion is most frequently measured by high performance liquid chromatography with electrochemical detection (HPLC-EC) following enzymatic hydrolysis of DNA or as the base equivalent, 8-oxoguanine, by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) following acid hydrolysis of DNA. We have noted a discrepancy in the literature whereby the levels of 8-oxo-2'-deoxyguanosine measured by HPLC-EC in UVC-irradiated DNA are significantly higher than when 8-oxoguanine is measured by GC-MS. By making use of the availability of both HPLC-EC and stable-isotope dilution GC-MS methodologies in our laboratory we have confirmed the discrepancy noted in the literature by parallel analysis of the same UVC-irradiated calf thymus DNA samples. Furthermore, analysis of the UVC-induced product by UV-visible spectrophotometry, voltammetry and its detection by a monoclonal antibody which recognises 8-oxo-2'-deoxyguanosine strongly suggests that the product is indeed 8-oxo-2'-deoxyguanosine. Partial explanation for this discrepancy could be an inordinate resistance of UVC-irradiated DNA to formic acid hydrolysis. However, we cannot completely exclude the possibility that there is a formic acid-labile species which co-elutes with 8-oxo-2'-deoxyguanosine in enzymatically digested UVC-irradiated DNA. Whether this phenomenon is unique to UV-irradiation damage or occurs with other systems that cause oxidative damage to DNA awaits further investigation. Irrespective of the exact mechanism, there will be significant implications for the analysis of oxidative DNA damage.

Biological inactivation of pBR322 plasmid DNA by enzyme- and radiation-induced single-strand damage under various conditions

The influence of three different kinds of single-strand breaks (ssb) on the biological activity of plasmid DNA (pBR322) was studied. The single-strand breaks were produced either by gamma-irradiation (together with base and sugar damage) or by DNase I digestion which introduced ligatable ssb. Non-ligatable ssb--single-strand gaps of three nucleotides in length--were generated in the nicked DNA by exonuclease III treatment. The biological activity (N/N(o)) of this damaged DNA was assessed in vivo by transformation of E. coli (CMK) repair wild-type cells. The activity of the enzymes of E. coli was studied in vitro by incubation in a protein extract of E. coli making use of an in vitro assay introduced earlier, which makes it possible to distinguish between enzymatic degradation (dsb formation) and repair of damaged plasmid DNA. The biological activity (D37) of DNA with non-ligatable ssb, as determined by electrotransformation, was about 56% lower than that of DNA with ligatable ssb. The biological activity of enzymatically damaged DNA is greater in calcium-treated cells than in electroporated cells. It is proposed that this is due to a calcium-dependent inhibition of nucleases. In contrast to the enzymatically damaged DNA, with gamma-radiation-damaged DNA a calcium-dependent increase in survival was not observed. Therefore, calcium-dependent nucleases do not play a role in the repair of damage produced by gamma-irradiation. The enzyme activity data show that the single-strand damages are either converted into dsb or repaired. A comparison of the efficiency of dsb formation in the extract for two of the single-strand damages is presented. The efficiency depends on the kind of damage and on the presence of cofactors, especially ATP and dNTPs.

The measurement of oxidative damage to DNA by HPLC and GC/MS techniques

Oxidative damage to DNA has been measured by quantitating 8-hydroxy-2'-deoxyguanosine (8-OHdGuo) after enzymic digestion of DNA, followed by HPLC separation and electrochemical detection. Alternatively, 8-hydroxyguanine (and a wide range of other base-derived products of free radical attack) may be measured after acidic hydrolysis of DNA or chromatin, followed by derivatization and gas-chromatography/mass spectrometry. Both techniques have comparable sensitivity, but GC/MS enables determination of a wide variety of chemical changes to all four DNA bases and it can be applied to DNA-protein complexes. However, the two techniques do not always give similar results. Potential reasons for this are discussed. Greater attention to methodological questions is required before using measurement of 8-OHdGuo as a "routine" marker of oxidative DNA damage in vivo.

Characterization of free radical-induced damage to DNA by the combined use of enzymatic hydrolysis and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry

The use of gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) for characterization of free radical-induced base damage to DNA is presented. Damage introduced to DNA by reactive oxygen species such as hydroxyl radicals appears to play an important role in mutagenesis, carcinogenesis and aging. Elucidation of the chemical nature of such DNA lesions is necessary for the assessment of their biological consequences and enzymatic repair. DNA exposed to radiation-generated hydroxyl radicals in aqueous solution was hydrolyzed to 2'-deoxyribonucleosides with a mixture of DNase I, venom and spleen exonucleases and alkaline phosphatase. The hydrolysate was subsequently trimethylsilylated and analyzed by GC-MS. A large number of DNA lesions were separated and identified. Mass spectra obtained were interpreted on the basis of the typical fragmentation pathways of trimethylsilylated nucleosides. The use of GC-MS with selected-ion monitoring facilitated the detection of these lesions at the very low quantities and radiation doses (below 10 Gray) that might be relevant to those in biological systems.

Free-radical-induced formation of an 8,5'-cyclo-2'-deoxyguanosine moiety in deoxyribonucleic acid

Isolation and identification of a novel .OH-induced product, namely an 8,5'-cyclo-2'-deoxyguanosine moiety, in DNA and 2'-deoxyguanosine are described. .OH radicals were generated in dilute aqueous solutions by gamma-irradiation. Analyses of 2'-deoxyguanosine and enzymic hydrolysates of DNA by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (g.c.-m.s.) after trimethylsilylation showed the presence of 8,5-cyclo-2'-deoxyguanosine on the basis of its fragment ions. This product was isolated by h.p.l.c. Its u.v. and n.m.r. spectra taken were in agreement with the structure suggested by its mass spectrum. Exact masses of the typical ions from the mass spectrum of the trimethylsilyl derivative of this product were measured by high-resolution m.s. The values found were in excellent agreement with the theoretical mass derived from the suggested fragmentation patterns. Both (5'R)- and (5'S)-epimers of 8,5'-cyclo-2'-deoxyguanosine were observed. These two diastereomers were separated from each other by g.c. as well as by h.p.l.c. The assignment of the epimers was accomplished on the basis of the n.m.r. data. The formation of 8,5'-cyclo-2'-deoxyguanosine was suppressed by the presence of O2 in the solutions. The use of g.c.-m.s. with the selected-ion monitoring technique facilitated the detection of 8,5'-cyclo-2'-deoxyguanosine in DNA at radiation doses as low as 1 Gy. Its mechanism of formation probably involves hydrogen atom abstraction by .OH radicals from the C-5' of the 2'-deoxyguanosine moiety followed by intramolecular cyclization with the formation of a covalent bond between the C-5' and C-8 and subsequent oxidation of the resulting N-7-centred radical.

The metabolic activation of dibenzo[a,e]fluoranthene in vitro. Evidence that its bay-region and pseudo-bay-region diol-epoxides react preferentially with guanosine

Dibenzo[a,e]fluoranthene ( DBF ), a non- alternant carcinogenic polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH), binds covalently to DNA. The main adducts were characterized as covalent additions of its bay-region and pseudo-bay-region diol-epoxides. The structure of these 2 adducts was analyzed by mass spectrometry using their persilyl derivatives. 3,4-Dihydroxy-1,2-epoxy-1,2,3,4-tetrahydro- DBF (3,4-diol-1,2-epoxy- DBF ) and 12,13-dihydroxy-10,11-epoxy-10,11,12,13-tetrahydro- DBF (12, 13-diol-10,11-epoxy- DBF ) obtained by synthesis were allowed to react in vitro with calf thymus DNA or with poly(G). The comigration of DNA and poly(G) adducts isolated after acid hydrolysis of DNA and poly(G) was in good agreement with mass spectroscopic results: both bay-region and pseudo-bay-region DBF diol-epoxides reacted with guanine residues.