单细胞凝胶电泳联合原子力显微镜观测UVB诱导的细胞DNA损伤模式变化

目的：检测UVB诱导的真核细胞DNA损伤。方法：采用单细胞凝胶电泳与原子力显微镜。结果：不同照射剂量的UVB引起的真核细胞DNA损伤模式不同。在0～20J／m2照射剂量范围内DNA无损伤;在20--360J／m2照射剂量范围内DNA损伤程度加快;当照射剂量超过360J／m2时DNA损伤速度减慢,实验组之间无显著性差异,出现“平台”。原子力显微镜的观察结果表明随着UVB照射剂量的增加,DNA结构的变化经历了断裂、交联与断裂并存的损伤增强趋势。当照射能量达到280J／m2时细胞DNA大都形成断片,并相互交联在一起。这一结果表明彗星电泳检测到的UVB照射剂量达到一定剂量后,DNA损伤出现”平台”的原因可能是此时DNA发生了链内或链间交联。结论：不同照射剂量的UVB造成的细胞DNA损伤模式不同;原子力显微镜是一种比较直观的观测DNA损伤的方法。借助原子力显微镜我们可以深入了解单细胞凝胶电泳检测的原理,为DNA损伤检测提供更优良的检测手段。     

原子力显微镜观测紫外线诱导的K562肿瘤细胞DNA损伤

利用彗星电泳检测出UVB、UVC短时间照射会使肿瘤细胞的DNA发生断裂,而长时间照射之后彗星电泳无法检测到碎片,推测可能是由于DNA分子交联的原因[1],国内外尚无定论.为了更直观的研究这种现象,提取了UVB,UVA照射后K562细胞的DNA,并调节到合适的浓度在原子力显微镜下观测.实验结果表明UVB对K562肿瘤细胞DNA损伤的影响呈现时间/剂量效应,较短时间照射主要产生DNA的链断裂,较长时间辐射则主要产生DNA链的交联.UVC对K562肿瘤细胞DNA的损伤大于UVB.UVC短时照射即可引起DNA的断裂和交联,较长时间辐射主要产生交联和一些断裂;长时间照射不但产生大量交联,同时有大量断裂产生,并发生凝缩和缠绕等结构破坏.     

DNA修复通路的关键酶——FAN1

<正>来自德克萨斯大学M.D.安德森癌症中心和浙江大学生命科学院的科学家报道发现了一种可修复DNA交联损伤的关键酶.这一成果将刊登在Science上."DNA交联损伤的修复在肿瘤中十分常见,比如乳腺     

用单细胞凝胶电泳技术检测粉纹夜蛾5BI细胞DNA损伤的研究

为了探测昆虫细胞的DNA损伤,本实验应用单细胞凝胶电泳技术,对不同剂量的过氧化氢和甲醛引起的粉纹夜蛾5BI细胞DNA损伤效应进行了研究,结果表明59μM=10μM、150μM的过氧化氢能引起粉纹夜蛾5BI细胞的DNA断裂,且断裂程度和浓度水平之间成正相关关系;10μM、30μM、50μM的甲醛能引起粉纹夜蛾5BI细胞DNA损伤,其中在10μM时引起DNA断裂,在30μM、50μM时引起DNA交联。     

DNA损伤修复过程表观遗传学改变

多种化学、物理及生物因素可诱发细胞DNA损伤,损伤后DNA损伤位点被相关损伤感受器识别,激活相应的修复通路进行DNA修复。越来越多的证据表明DNA甲基化状态、蛋白翻译后修饰、染色质重塑、miRNA等修饰方式参与了DNA的损伤修复。文章通过不同损伤修复通路中这些修饰的特点,阐述表观遗传学改变在DNA损伤修复发展过程中的作用机制。     

60Co-γ射线辐照玉米种子对基因组DNA分子的影响

以不同剂量的60Co-γ射线辐照玉米种子,对各处理组分单株,采用CTAB抽提法提取幼叶组织基因组DNA,并对基因组DNA进行酶切,研究辐照对基因组DNA分子的损伤效应。结果表明:辐照剂量不同,得到的基因组DNA分子在各处理组间存在差异,当辐照剂量>200 Gy时,差异更为明显;辐照不仅能引起DNA分子链的断裂,还能改变核苷酸链上的碱基位置和顺序,使酶切位点发生改变。实验还对同一辐照剂量处理下的不同单株幼叶基因组DNA进行了重复实验,结果是一致的。     

端粒和端粒酶与衰老研究

衰老是一种多因素的复合调控过程,表现为染色体端粒长度的改变、DNA损伤、DNA的甲基化和细胞的氧化损伤等,并已形成了许多学说,而端粒学说成为衰老研究的热点之一.对与衰老紧密相关的因素———端粒、端粒酶的结构及其与衰老关系的研究进展进行综述,阐明对端粒—端粒酶的作用将会在抗衰老方面有着十分重要的理论价值及实际意义.     

范可尼贫血症与DNA交联损伤修复

范可尼贫血症(FA)又称范可尼综合征,是一种常染色体或X染色体连锁的隐性遗传病.范可尼贫血症患者具有先天性发育异常、骨髓衰竭、高度癌症易感性等特征.尽管范可尼贫血症是一种在人群中发生比例仅为1:1000000～5:1000000的罕见遗传病,但它却是一个可以用来研究DNA损伤修复和肿瘤发生的重要模型.迄今为止,已经确定了15个范可尼贫血症基因(FA基因)以及一些范可尼贫血症相关基因.当15个FA基因中的任何一个发生突变,都会导致范可尼贫血症的发生.从这些基因发生突变的病人身上所分离得到的细胞则具有对DNA交联损伤试剂(如丝裂霉素C等)高度敏感,以及基因组不稳定的表型.在此,对目前所了解的FA基因所编码的FA蛋白参与DNA交联损伤修复的具体分子机制进行了回顾与阐述.     

邻啡罗啉-Cu对DNA的损伤及其化学核酸酶活性

邻啡罗啉-Cu是一种具有核酸酶活性的配合物,可产生多种形式的DNA损伤,包括碱基修饰、异常碱基位点、链断裂及交联等.近年来,邻啡罗啉-Cu因其切割核酸的性质及作为一种可产生活性氧的模型,引起了学者们浓厚的兴趣,在自由基生物学与医学及核酸化学领域受到广泛的关注.     

UV-B辐射增强对三种赤潮微藻DNA的伤害效应

运用生态毒理学和生物化学方法研究了UV-B辐射增强对赤潮异弯藻、亚历山大藻和中肋骨条藻DNA的伤害作用.结果表明,3种赤潮微藻的生长状况对UV-B辐射增强的敏感性不同;对UV-B辐射增强的敏感性由高到低依次是赤潮异弯藻、亚历山大藻和中肋骨条藻.随着UV-B辐射剂量的增加,3种赤潮微藻的DNA损伤程度提高,而且赤潮异弯藻DNA的损伤程度明显高于亚历山大藻和中肋骨条藻,亚历山大藻DNA的伤害程度又远远高于中肋骨条藻.UV-B辐射处理解除后,损伤DNA可明显恢复.赤潮异湾藻和亚历山大藻恢复培养6d,损伤DNA可明显恢复(P＜0.05);而中肋骨条藻恢复培养3d,损伤DNA可明显恢复(P＜0.05),说明3种赤潮微藻的DNA损伤水平不适合作为指示UV-B辐射增强的生物学指标.     

单细胞凝胶电泳技术及在土壤生态毒理学中的应用

单细胞凝胶电泳技术又称为彗星实验,是最近几年发展起来的一种快速、简单、灵敏、可靠的检测细胞核DNA损伤的技术。总结了近几年来单细胞凝胶电泳技术的发展、原理、方法及其应用,并指出其下一步的发展趋势。彗星实验中,镶嵌于琼脂糖中的细胞核在电场中向正极移动,因细胞核与DNA片段迁移速率不同,而形成类似“彗星”的图像。目前采用的彗星实验有多种,可以检测诸如DNA双链断裂、单链断裂、碱不稳定位点等多种类型的DNA损伤。碱性彗星实验因其高灵敏度而被广泛采用。彗星实验的主要步骤包括细胞核悬浮液的获得、彗星电泳胶板制备、细胞裂解、DNA变性解旋、电泳、中和、染色和观察等。目前彗星实验广泛应用于各个研究领域,近年来开始用于环境污染的基因毒性研究和生物监测,并取得了迅速发展。     

Evaluation of genotoxicity of combined soil pollution by cadmium and imidacloprid

Cadmium (Cd) is one of the important pollutants of soil and the genotoxicity of Cd-contaminated soil was studied in combination with imidacloprid. The single cell gel electrophoresis or comet assay was used to quantify DNA strand breaks as a measure of DNA damage induced by Cd and imidacloprid contamination in soil. The soil was artificially contaminated by Cd 2 h at 25℃ and were used in the comet assay. DNA damage was measured as the values of percentage of nuclei with tails, tail length, tail DNA, tail moment (TM), and Olive tail moment (OTM). DNA damages of root tips of Vicia faba increased after Cd treatment and there were dose-related increases in DNA damage measured as these parameters. However, the addition of imidacloprid further increased the DNA damage. These data confirmed the genotoxic effect of Cd to plants, and that the combined pollution with imidacloprid can enhance the genotoxicity of Cd.     

Assessing the DNA methylation status of single cells with the comet assay

The comet assay (single cell gel electrophoresis) is a cost-effective, sensitive, and simple technique that is traditionally used for analyzing and quantifying DNA damage in individual cells. The aim of this study was to determine whether the comet assay could be modified to detect changes in the levels of DNA methylation in single cells. We used the difference in methylation sensitivity of the isoschizomeric restriction endonucleases HpaII and MspI to demonstrate the feasibility of the comet assay to measure the global DNA methylation level of individual cells. The results were verified with the well-established cytosine extension assay. We were able to show variations in DNA methylation after treatment of cultured cells with 5-azacytidine and succinylacetone, an accumulating metabolite in human tyrosinemia type I.     

The comet assay for DNA damage and repair

The comet assay (single-cell gel electrophoresis) is a simple method for measuring deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) strand breaks in eukaryotic cells. Cells embedded in agarose on a microscope slide are lysed with detergent and high salt to form nucleoids containing supercoiled loops of DNA linked to the nuclear matrix. Electrophoresis at high pH results in structures resembling comets, observed by fluorescence microscopy; the intensity of the comet tail relative to the head reflects the number of DNA breaks. The likely basis for this is that loops containing a break lose their supercoiling and become free to extend toward the anode. The assay has applications in testing novel chemicals for genotoxicity, monitoring environmental contamination with genotoxins, human biomonitoring and molecular epidemiology, and fundamental research in DNA damage and repair. The sensitivity and specificity of the assay are greatly enhanced if the nucleoids are incubated with bacterial repair endonucleases that recognize specific kinds of damage in the DNA and convert lesions to DNA breaks, increasing the amount of DNA in the comet tail. DNA repair can be monitored by incubating cells after treatment with damaging agent and measuring the damage remaining at intervals. Alternatively, the repair activity in a cell extract can be measured by incubating it with nucleoids containing specific damage.     

Establishment of the comet assay in the freshwater snail Biomphalaria glabrata (Say, 1818)

The single cell gel electrophoresis or the comet assay was established in the freshwater snail Biomphalaria glabrata. For detecting DNA damage in circulating hemocytes, adult snails were irradiated with single doses of 2.5, 5, 10 and 20 Gy of (60)Co gamma radiation. Genotoxic effect of ionizing radiation was detected at all doses as a dose-related increase in DNA migration. Comet assay in B. glabrata demonstrated to be a simple, fast and reliable tool in the evaluation of genotoxic effects of environmental mutagens.     

Impact of the comet assay in radiobiology

Until the development of single cell gel electrophoresis methods in the 1980s, measurement of radiation-induced DNA strand breaks in individual cells was limited to detection of micronuclei or chromosome breaks that measured the combined effects of exposure and repair. Development of methods to measure the extent of migration of DNA from single cells permitted detection of initial radiation-induced DNA breaks present in each cell. As cells need not be radiolabeled, there were new opportunities for analysis of radiation effects on cells from virtually any tissue, provided a single cell suspension could be prepared. The comet assay (as this method was subsequently named) was able to measure, for the first time, the fraction of radiobiologically hypoxic cells in mouse and human tumors. It was used to determine that the rate of rejoining of DNA breaks was relatively homogenous within an irradiated population of cells. Because individual cells were analyzed, heavily damaged or apoptotic cells could be identified and eliminated from analysis to determine "true" DNA strand break rejoining rates. Other examples of applications of the comet assay in radiobiology research include analysis of the inter-individual differences in response to radiation, effect of hypoxia modifying agents on tumor hypoxic fraction, the role of cell cycle position during DNA break induction and rejoining, non-targeted effects on bystander cells, and effects of charged particles on DNA fragmentation patterns.     

Calibration of the comet assay for the measurement of DNA damage in mammalian cells

We used X-rays from a linear accelerator and from a low energy therapeutic source to calibrate the single cell gel electrophoresis (comet assay), a widely used method to measure DNA damage. γ-Rays from ⁶⁰Co, with known efficiency in inducing DNA breakage, were used as reference. Human lymphocytes and one murine tumour cell line, F10-M3 cells, were irradiated under different experimental conditions. A similar relationship between radiation dose and induced DNA damage was obtained with γ- and X-rays. A calibration curve was constructed to convert the comet assay raw data into break frequency. The median levels of DNA breaks and oxidative damage in circulating lymphocytes from healthy volunteers were calculated to be 0.76 and 0.80 breaks/10⁹ Da, respectively, (0.50 and 0.52 breaks/10⁶ bp). The values of oxidative DNA damage were in the same order of magnitude as those found by others with HPLC methods.     

Calibration of the comet assay for the measurement of DNA damage in mammalian cells

We used X-rays from a linear accelerator and from a low energy therapeutic source to calibrate the single cell gel electrophoresis (comet assay), a widely used method to measure DNA damage. γ-Rays from ⁶⁰Co, with known efficiency in inducing DNA breakage, were used as reference. Human lymphocytes and one murine tumour cell line, F10-M3 cells, were irradiated under different experimental conditions. A similar relationship between radiation dose and induced DNA damage was obtained with γ- and X-rays. A calibration curve was constructed to convert the comet assay raw data into break frequency. The median levels of DNA breaks and oxidative damage in circulating lymphocytes from healthy volunteers were calculated to be 0.76 and 0.80 breaks/10⁹ Da, respectively, (0.50 and 0.52 breaks/10⁶ bp). The values of oxidative DNA damage were in the same order of magnitude as those found by others with HPLC methods.     

Evaluation of the genotoxicity of cadmium in gill cells of the clam <Emphasis Type="Italic">Corbicula japonica</Emphasis> using the comet assay

Cadmium-induced DNA degradation in gill cells of the clam Corbicula japonica was assessed using the comet assay (single-cell gel electrophoresis). Accumulation of highly toxic cadmium in the gill cells of bivalve is accompanied by damage to the cell genome, which is revealed as DNA migration in the comet assay. The main mechanisms of Cd effects on the integrity of the DNA structure are discussed.     

Over expression of glutamate cysteine ligase increases cellular resistance to H2O2-induced DNA single-strand breaks.

Hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) can cause single strand DNA breaks (ssDNA) in cells when the mechanisms normally in place to reduce it are overwhelmed. Such mechanisms include catalase, glutathione peroxidases (GPx), and peroxiredoxins. The relative importance of these enzymes in H2O2 reduction varies with cell and tissue type. The role of the GPx cofactor glutathione (GSH) in oxidative defense can be further understood by modulating its synthesis. The first and rate-limiting enzyme in GSH synthesis is glutamate-cysteine ligase (GCL), which has a catalytic subunit (Gclc) and a modifier subunit (Gclm). Using mouse hepatoma cells we evaluated the effects of GCL over expression on H2O2-induced changes in GSH and ssDNA break formation with the single cell gel electrophoresis assay (SCG or comet assay), and the acridine orange DNA unwinding flow cytometry assay (AO unwinding assay). Cells over expressing GCL had higher GSH content than control cells, and both SCG and AO unwinding assays revealed that cells over expressing GCL were significantly more resistant to H2O2-induced ssDNA break formation. Furthermore, using the AO unwinding assay, the prevalence of H2O2-induced breaks in different phases of the cell cycle was not different, and the degree of protection afforded by GCL over expression was also not cell cycle phase dependent. Our results support the hypothesis that GCL over expression enhanced GSH biosynthesis and protected cells from H2O2-induced DNA breaks. These results also suggest that genetic polymorphisms that affect GCL expression may be important determinants of oxidative DNA damage and cancer.