Reduced Levels of Mitochondrial DNA Increases the Toxicity of 9-ß-D-Arabinofuranosylguanine (araG)

Incubation of cells with thymidine (dThd) is known to cause dNTP pool imbalance as well as deletions and depletion of the mtDNA. In order to gain further understanding in the events involved in dThd toxicity over time, H9 cells were cultured for 20 months in the presence or absence of 1μ M dThd. The level of mtDNA was reduced by 90% in the cells grown in dThd as compared to the control cells. The H9/dThd cells also showed a 100-fold increased sensitivity towards the cytotoxicity of the antileukemic compound 9-β -D-arabinofuranolsylguanine (araG).     

Reversible permeabilization of lymphocytes destroys the incorporation of deoxythymidine but not of deoxycytidine

The total uptake, phosphorylation and incorporation of thymidine (dThd) and deoxycytidine (dCyd) were compared in intact and reversibly permeabilized human tonsillar lymphocytes. The total uptake of [3H]dThd was lower than that of [5-3H]dCyd, but almost all of [3H]dThd was incorporated into DNA. However, the main part of [5-3H]dCyd taken up by the lymphocytes was found in the pool as phosphorylated nucleoside (55%), and only a smaller part (13%) was incorporated into DNA. Phosphorylated nucleosides were determined by DEAE-cellulose sheets in the ethanol-soluble fraction of the cells. The reversible permeabilization of lymphocytes by Dextran T-150 destroys totally the [3H]dThd incorporation, while [5-3H]dCyd incorporation decreased only to 60% of intact cells. During permeabilization the phosphorylation of both nucleosides increased severalfold. After permeabilization all [3H]dThd was in dTMP form, while [5-3H]dCyd was also found in dCDP (3%) and dCTP (38%) form. In the meanwhile, 22% of thymidine kinase, 63% of deoxycytidine kinase and 98% of DNA polymerase activity were measured in permeabilized cells as compared to intact cells. The results suggest different relationships between the lymphocyte plasma membrane and the salvage pathways of the two pyrimidine nucleosides.     

Unscheduled DNA synthesis in rat pleural mesothelial cells treated with mineral fibres

Unscheduled DNA synthesis (UDS) was studied in confluent rat pleural mesothelial cells (RPMCs) arrested in G0/G1 with hydroxyurea (HU) and treated with various fibre types, i.e., chrysotile, crocidolite or attapulgite. In addition, the effects of UV light and of benzo[a]pyrene were determined as references. Using autoradiography after [3H]thymidine incorporation ([3H]dThd), RPMCs treated with 4 micrograms/cm2 of chrysotile fibres exhibited a low but significant enhancement of net grains compared to untreated cells. Treatment with higher doses of chrysotile was not possible because of the impairment of microscopic observation due to the presence of the fibres. Using liquid scintillation counting, RPMCs treated with chrysotile or crocidolite showed a significant dose-dependent increase in [3H]dThd incorporation compared to untreated cells. In contrast, attapulgite did not enhance [3H]dThd incorporation compared to untreated cells. Treatment of RPMCs with 1, 2 or 4 micrograms/ml of benzo[a]pyrene resulted in a significant increase in [3H]dThd incorporation. In order to discount a possible role of S cells in the augmentation of [3H]dThd incorporation, despite the presence of 5 mM HU, S cells were counted by autoradiography. Results indicated that the percentage of S cells was similar in asbestos-treated and untreated cultures. Stimulation of the S phase also seems unlikely because treatment of RPMCs with asbestos fibres in the absence of HU resulted in a reduction of [3H]dThd incorporation attributed to an impairment of the S phase by the fibres. 1-4 micrograms/ml benzo[a]pyrene or 10-50 J/m2 UV light resulted in an approximate doubling of [3H]dThd incorporation. The effects of inhibitors of DNA repair were determined in chrysotile-treated RPMCs. [3H]dThd incorporation was inhibited by cytosine arabinoside and nalidixic acid. These results show that asbestos produces UDS in RPMCs.     

Kinetic properties of mutant human thymidine kinase 2 suggest a mechanism for mitochondrial DNA depletion myopathy

Thymidine kinase 2 (TK2) is a mitochondrial (mt) pyrimidine deoxynucleoside salvage enzyme involved in mtDNA precursor synthesis. The full-length human TK2 cDNA was cloned and sequenced. A discrepancy at amino acid 37 within the mt leader sequence in the DNA compared with the determined peptide sequence was found. Two mutations in the human TK2 gene, His-121 to Asn and Ile-212 to Asn, were recently described in patients with severe mtDNA depletion myopathy (Saada, A., Shaag, A., Mandel, H., Nevo, Y., Eriksson, S., and Elpeleg, O. (2001) Nat. Genet. 29, 342-344). The same mutations in TK2 were introduced, and the mutant enzymes, prepared in recombinant form, were shown to have similar subunit structure to wild type TK2. The I212N mutant showed less than 1% activity as compared with wild type TK2 with all deoxynucleosides. The H121N mutant enzyme had normal K(m) values for thymidine (dThd) and deoxycytidine (dCyd), 6 and 11 microm, respectively, but 2- and 3-fold lower V(max) values as compared with wild type TK2 and markedly increased K(m) values for ATP, leading to decreased enzyme efficiency. Competition experiments revealed that dCyd and dThd interacted differently with the H121N mutant as compared with the wild type enzyme. The consequences of the two point mutations of TK2 and the role of TK2 in mt disorders are discussed.     

Effect of exogenous thymidine on sister-chromatid exchange frequency in Chinese hamster ovary cells with bromodeoxyuridine- and chlorodeoxyuridine-substituted chromosomes

There are conflicting reports on the effect of exogenous thymidine (dThd) on the frequency of sister-chromatid exchanges (SCEs) in Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells. Thymidine has been reported either to increase or to have no effect on SCE frequency under similar experimental conditions. To resolve this controversy, we have carried out a series of experiments to examine the effect of dThd on CHO cells cultured with 5-bromodeoxyuridine (BrdUrd). In addition, we have examined the effect of dThd on CHO cells cultured with 5-chlorodeoxyuridine (CldUrd), a much more potent inducer of SCEs than BrdUrd. The addition of 100 microM dThd to the culture medium caused a consistent decrease in the yield of SCEs in cells grown in BrdUrd for two cell cycles. The decrease was even greater when cells were grown in dThd and CldUrd. Analysis of twin and single SCEs indicated that dThd must be present during the first cell cycle to reduce the frequency of SCEs. Because excess dThd is thought to have an effect when DNA replicates on a template substituted with a halogenated nucleoside, dThd at concentrations from 100 microM to 9 mM was added to cultures for the second cell cycle after a first cell cycle in BrdUrd. In this experiment, the presence of dThd increased SCE frequency in a dose-dependent manner. The results suggest that if dThd competes with halogenated nucleosides and thus decreases their incorporation into DNA, SCEs are suppressed in the subsequent cell cycle, whereas if excess dThd creates a dNTP pool imbalance, SCEs can be increased.     

Thymidylate synthetase-deficient mouse FM3A mammary carcinoma cell line as a tool for studying the thymidine salvage pathway and the incorporation of thymidine analogues into host cell DNA.

A thymidylate (dTMP) synthetase-deficient murine mammary carcinoma cell line (FM3A/TS-), auxotrophic for thymidine (dThd), proved extremely useful for studying the dependence of cell growth on the exogenous supply of dThd, the relation between cell growth and DNA synthesis, and the ability of a series of 25 5-substituted 2'-deoxyuridines (dUrd) to substitute for dThd in sustaining cell growth. FM3A/TS-cells did not proliferate unless dThd was supplied to the cell culture medium. The 5-halogenated dUrd derivatives 5-chloro-dUrd, 5-bromo-dUrd and 5-iodo-d Urd also sustained FM3A/TS- cell growth. The extents of incorporation of [methyl-3H]dThd and 5-iodo-[6-3H]dUrd into DNA were closely correlated with their stimulatory effects on FM3A/TS- cell growth. This suggests that the stimulatory effects of the dUrd analogues on the growth rate of FM3A/TS- cells may be considered as evidence for their incorporation into host cell DNA. Based on this premise it is postulated that, in addition to 5-chloro-dUrd, 5-bromo-dUrd, 5-iodo-dUrd and dThd itself, the following dThd analogues are also incorporated into FM3A/TS- cell DNA (in order of the extent to which they are incorporated): 5-hydroxy-dUrd greater than 5-propynyloxy-dUrd greater than 5-ethyl-dUrd greater than 5-ethynyl-dUrd approximately 5-vinyl-dUrd. Thus, the dTMP synthetase-deficient FM3A/TS- cell line represents a unique system to dissociate the de novo and salvage pathways of dTMP biosynthesis and to distinguish those dUrd analogues that are incorporated into DNA from those that are not.     

Strategies for the measurement of the inhibitory effects of thymidine analogs on the activity of thymidylate synthase in intact murine leukemia L1210 cells

Two strategies have been pursued to monitor the inhibition of thymidylate (dTMP) synthase (5,10-methylenetetrahydrofolate:dUMP C-methyltransferase, EC 2.1.1.45) by thymidine (dThd) analogs in intact murine leukemia L1210 cells. The first method was based on the determination of tritium release from 2'-deoxy[5-3H]uridine [( 5-3H]dUrd) or 2'-deoxy[5-3H]cytidine [( 5-3H]dCyd); the second method was based on an estimation of the amount of dCyd incorporated into DNA as dTMP. The validity of these procedures was assessed by evaluating the inhibition of thymidylate synthase in murine leukemia L1210 cells by a series of 18 dThd analogs. There was a strong correlation between the inhibitory effects of the dThd analogs on the proliferation of L1210 cells on the one hand, and (i) their inhibitory effects on tritium release from [5-3H]dCyd (r = 0.926) and (ii) their inhibitory effects on the incorporation of dCyd into DNA dTMP (r = 0.921), on the other hand. Evaluation of tritium release from [5-3H]dCyd proved to be the most convenient method that has been described so far to measure thymidylate synthase activity and to follow the inhibitory effects of thymidylate synthase inhibitors in intact L1210 cells, since this method is rapid and very sensitive, and since it proved superior to the evaluation of tritium release from [5-3H]dUrd because it circumvents possible interactions of the inhibitors with thymidine kinase activity.     

Nicotinamide deficiency in human lymphocytes prevents the [H]thymidine-induced adaptive response for the repair of X-ray-induced chromosomal damage

Human lymphocytes treated with [3H]thymidine ([3H]dThd) become refractory to the induction of chromosomal aberrations by subsequent doses of X rays. This adaptive response to [3H]dThd does not occur in the presence of 3-aminobenzamide (3AB). 3AB inhibits the synthesis of poly(ADP-ribose) by the enzyme adenosine diphosphate ribosyl transferase (ADPRT), which requires NAD as a substrate. 3AB also prevents chromosomal repair, as measured in X-ray dose-fractionation studies. Because 3AB might interfere with metabolic reactions other than those mediated by ADPRT, experiments were carried out to see if the adaptive response was also inhibited in nicotinamide-free medium, which prevents poly(ADP-ribosyl)ation by depleting cellular NAD. The experiments show that the incorporation of [3H]dThd has no effect on the induction of chromosomal aberrations by subsequent doses of X rays if the cells are cultured in nicotinamide-free medium. Nicotinamide deficiency mimics the effects of 3AB on both the adaptive response and chromosome repair. The results indicate that ADPRT activity itself, and not other metabolic processes affected by inhibitors of this enzyme, plays an essential role in the adaptive response.     

The role of cytoplasmic deoxycytidine kinase in the mitochondrial effects of the anti-human immunodeficiency virus compound, 2',3'-dideoxycytidine.

2',3'-Dideoxycytidine (ddC) is a potent inhibitor of human immunodeficiency virus replication in vitro and shows beneficial effects in AIDS therapy. The compound inhibits mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) synthesis at a clinically relevant concentration, which could be responsible for the side effects of ddC observed in the clinic. Thymidine (dThd), one of the substrates of mitochondrial deoxypyrimidine kinase (dPyd kinase), was not able to reverse the mitochondrial toxicity of ddC in CEM cells. Furthermore, the cytoplasmic deoxycytidine kinase (dCyd kinase)-deficient CEM cells were highly resistant to the mitochondrial toxicity of ddC. These data suggest a critical role for cytoplasmic dCyd kinase in the mitochondrial toxicity of ddC. The metabolites of ddC, but not ddC itself, were able to inhibit mtDNA synthesis in isolated mitochondria. The potency of the inhibitory effect was in the order of ddCTP greater than ddCDP greater than ddCMP greater than ddC. The lack of inhibition by ddC of mtDNA synthesis could be due to the inefficient ddC phosphorylation in mitochondria. Although the mitochondrial dPyd kinase was reported to phosphorylate ddC, the phosphorylation of ddC in isolated mitochondria was not detectable. The data suggest that ddC is phosphorylated to ddCTP in the cytoplasm and then transported into mitochondria to exert its inhibitory effect on mtDNA synthesis.     

Poly(ADP-ribose) synthesis and inhibition of DNA synthesis in Chinese hamster cells treated with methylating agents and thymidine

A possible role of poly(ADP-ribose) synthesis in modulating the response of V79 cells to DNA damage induced by N-methyl-N'-nitro-N-nitrosoguanidine (MNNG) and methyl methanesulfonate (MMS) was investigated. Inhibition of [3H]thymidine (dThd) incorporation into DNA and lowering of NAD+ levels in intact cells were employed as parameters of DNA-synthesis inhibition and poly(ADP-ribose) synthesis, respectively. Dose responses of these parameters were studied in cells 2 and 24 h after treatment with the methylating agents in medium with or without dThd. The initial inhibition of DNA synthesis was uniformly associated with stimulation of poly(ADP-ribose) synthesis whether the cells were treated with MNNG or MMS, incubated with or without 20 microM dThd which did not inhibit poly(ADP-ribose) synthesis, or incubated with 3 mM dThd which did inhibit the latter synthesis. By contrast, the DNA-synthesis inhibition detected 24 h after treatment with MNNG was not associated with poly(ADP-ribose) synthesis. These data suggest that (i) the mechanism of this later inhibition of DNA synthesis is different from that of the initial inhibition, (ii) DNA-synthesis inhibition does not stimulate poly(ADP-ribose) synthesis, and (iii) single-strand breaks, resulting from N-methylation of the DNA, stimulate poly(ADP-ribose) synthesis, which may produce the initial inhibition of DNA synthesis. The initial inhibition of DNA synthesis was not uniformly associated with mutagenesis and dThd facilitation of MNNG-induced cytotoxicity and mutagenesis. This indicates that O-methylation of DNA does not stimulate poly(ADP-ribose) synthesis. Our data suggest that, in V79 cells treated with methylating agents, poly(ADP-ribose) synthesis is stimulated by single-strand breaks, inhibits DNA synthesis, and thereby serves to allow time for repair of the DNA prior to replication.     

Uptake of [3H] thymidine and cell DNA synthesis during the early multiplication phase of herpesvirus hominis in BHK cells.

Experiments about the interaction of herpes viruses with BHK-cells during the first 6 h after infection concerning uptake and incorporation of dThd have been reported. During adsorption and penetration, the inhibition of uptake and of incorporation of [3H] dThd is sensitive to heat, but not to ultraviolet irradiation or cycloheximide. The eclipse is characterized by a strongly increased uptake of [3H] dThd and by inhibition of cell DNA synthesis. Both are sensitive to ultraviolet irradiation of the particles and cycloheximid treatment of the cells. It is concluded that the events during adsorption and penetration are dependent on the particles themselves, whereas the events during the eclipse depend on the activity of the viral genome. The implications of the findings are discussed.     

Thymidylate nucleotide supply for mitochondrial DNA synthesis in mouse L-cells. Effect of 5-fluorodeoxyuridine and methotrexate in thymidine kinase plus and thymidine kinase minus cells.

The effects of 5-fluorodeoxyuridine and methotrexate on [3H]thymidine and 32P labeling of mtDNA were studied in two lines of mouse L-cells. LMTK- cells, which lack the major cellular thymidine kinase (EC 2.7.1.21) but contain a genetically distinct mitochondrial enzyme, were compared to LA9 cells, which contain both thymidine kinase activities. LMTK- cells were resistant to 5-flurodeoxyuridine by a factor of 200 in comparison to LA9 cells. In both cells lines appropriate drug treatment increased utilization of exogenous thymidine for mtDNA synthesis. The maximum enhancement was 10- to 12-fold for LA9 cells and approximately 20-fold for LMTK- cells when treated with 10 muM methotrexate. The rates of mtDNA and nuclear DNA synthesis during drug treatment were analyzed with 32P labeling and 5-bromo-2'-deoxyuridine density labeling experiments. Synthesis of both mtDNA and nuclear DNA were strongly inhibited by drug treatment of either LA9 or LMTK- cells in the absence of exogenous thymidine. The rate of mtDNA synthesis substantially exceeded that of nuclear DNA in LA9 cells treated with 4 muM 5-fluorodeoxyuridine and less than 5 muM thymidine. Both synthetic rates approached those of untreated LA9 control cultures if 20 muM thymidine was present during 5-fluorodeoxyuridine treatment. In contrast, in LMTK- cells treated with 10 muM methotrexate and 20 muM thymidine, mtDNA synthesis continued at 50 to 60% of the control rate for at least 10 hours while nuclear DNA synthesis was 96% inhibited. Synthesis of mtDNA mass-labeled in both strands with 5-bromouracil occurred when LMTK- cells were incubated for 30 hours with 10 muM methotrexate and 20 muM 5-bromodeoxyuridine. These results indicate that mtDNA synthesis is resistant to a limitation of the thymidine triphosphate supply and is not strictly dependent upon concomitant nuclear DNA synthesis in these cells.     

Human herpesvirus 8 open reading frame 21 is a thymidine and thymidylate kinase of narrow substrate specificity that efficiently phosphorylates zidovudine but not ganciclovir

Human herpesvirus 8 (HHV8) open reading frame (ORF) 21 is predicted to encode a protein similar to the thymidine kinase (TK) enzyme of other herpesviruses. Expressed in mammalian cells, ORF 21 was found to have low TK activity, based on poor growth in media containing hypoxanthine-aminopterin-thymidine (HAT) and low incorporation of [(3)H]thymidine into high-molecular-weight DNA. Kinetic analysis using HHV8 TK as a purified glutathione S-transferase (GST) fusion protein showed that the enzyme has a comparatively high K(m) for thymidine (dThd) of approximately 33.2 microM. Nearly 50% of the phosphorylated product of the reaction with dThd was thymidylate. This monophosphate kinase activity was more pronounced with 3'-azido-3'-deoxythymidine (AZT), in which 78% of the reaction product was AZT diphosphate. Thymidine analogs competitively inhibited dThd phosphorylation by HHV8 TK, while 2'-deoxyguanosine, 2'-deoxyadenosine, 2'-deoxycytidine, and corresponding analogs did not. Further competition experiments revealed that the nucleoside analog ganciclovir (GCV), at up to 1,000-fold molar excess, could not significantly inhibit dThd phosphorylation by the enzyme. In support of these data, 143B TK(-) cells expressing HHV8 TK phosphorylated GCV very poorly and were not susceptible to GCV toxicity compared to parental cells. Phosphorylation of [(3)H]GCV by a purified GST-HHV8 TK fusion protein was not detected by high-pressure liquid chromatography analysis. Structural features of HHV8 TK substrate recognition were investigated. Therapeutic implications of these findings are discussed.     

Differential affinities of pyrimidine nucleoside analogues for deoxythymidine and deoxycytidine kinase determine their incorporation into murine leukemia L1210 cells

A number of 5-substituted pyrimidine deoxyribonucleoside (dThd or dCyd) derivatives have been evaluated for their effects on the incorporation of dThd and dCyd into the nucleotide pool and nucleic acids of murine leukemia L1210 cells. Several observations indicate that the dThd kinase and dCyd kinase activity of the cells and the differential affinities of these enzymes for the pyrimidine deoxyribonucleosides determine the incorporation of dThd and dCyd into the cells: (i) dThd and dCyd were not incorporated into mutant L1210 cells deficient in either dThd kinase or dCyd kinase activity; (ii) for a series of 5-substituted dThd and dCyd analogues a strong correlation was found between their inhibitory effects on the incorporation of dThd or dCyd into cell material and their Ki/Km for dThd kinase and dCyd kinase (r = 0.92 and 0.97, respectively); (iii) inhibitors of DNA synthesis (i.e. araC) and RNA synthesis (i.e. actinomycin D) suppressed the incorporation of dThd, most likely due to an inhibitory activity at the dThd kinase level (through the allosteric action of dTTP or slow regeneration of dThd kinase).     

Evidence for the involvement of endogenous thymidine in the density-inhibition of tumorigenic Chinese hamster V79 cells

Two distinct low-molecular-weight growth inhibitory activities were isolated from supernatants of a density-inhibited, tumorigenic V79 Chinese hamster cell line. By chromatographic analyses, one of these was purified to homogeneity and eventually proved to be thymidine (dThd). In order to investigate the biological role of dThd in a density-inhibited culture of these cells, a dThd-kinase deficient (TK-) clone resistant to the excess of dThd was isolated from V79 cells and the effect of the supernatants on growth of these TK- or TK-proficient (TK+) cells was examined. As a result, the growth of TK- cells was not inhibited but enhanced by the supernatant at the concentrations which significantly inhibited the growth of TK+ cells. Such TK-dependent differential responses to supernatants suggest the presence of deoxyribonucleosides including a high level of dThd in the supernatants. Since it is unlikely that dThd might derive from denatured DNA of dead cells, an accumulation of endogenous dThd in confluent culture appears to be responsible for dThd triphosphates which are synthesized de novo, degraded and excreted into the medium rather than incorporated into DNA as a consequence of aberrant growth in the presence of certain growth inhibitors produced by density-inhibited V79 cells.     

Effect of 5-fluoro-2'-deoxyuridine (FdUrd) on 5-bromo-2'-deoxyuridine (BrdUrd) incorporation into DNA measured with a monoclonal BrdUrd antibody and by the BrdUrd/Hoechst quenching effect

The purpose of this study was to improve the application of bromodeoxyuridine (BrdUrd) for the flow cytometric analysis of cell kinetics. In order to obtain a quantitative measure of the DNA synthesis rate (or the number of divided cells), BrdUrd should replace thymidine (dThd) completely in the newly synthesized DNA strands. The de novo synthesis of dThd monophosphate competing with BrdUrd incorporation was stopped by fluorodeoxyuridine (FdUrd). Cells of a human leukemic cell line (REH) were exposed to BrdUrd for either 20 min, 8 h, or 24 h. Bromodeoxyuridine incorporation was determined by a monoclonal antibody as well as by the BrdUrd/Hoechst (H) technique. Counterstaining of the DNA was performed with propidium iodide or ethidium bromide. DNA fluorescence was measured in both techniques with a two-parameter flow cytometer, the histograms being analyzed by computer. It was found that FdUrd is required in the BrdUrd/H technique for replacement of dThd at low BrdUrd concentrations and long incubation times. With short incubation periods, as used for detection by the monoclonal anti-BrdUrd antibody, FdUrd increases the incorporated BrdUrd amount when BrdUrd concentrations of 10 microM or less are applied.     

Absence of extensive recombination between inter- and intraspecies mitochondrial DNA in mammalian cells

Recombination of mammalian mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) was examined using mouse X rat somatic cell hybrid clones and rat cybrid clones. The mouse X rat hybrids were isolated by fusion of chloramphenicol-sensitive (CAPs) mouse and CAP-resistant (CAPr) rat cells. The rat cybrids were isolated by fusion of rat cells with type B mtDNA and enucleated cells with type A mtDNA. Genetic and physical analyses showed that the mtDNAs of the hybrids and cybrids were simple mixtures of the two parental mtDNAs except in the following two cases: One was subclone H2-9 of mouse X rat hybrids, which was CAPr even though mtDNA from the CAPs mouse parent was predominantly retained. The other was rat cybrid subclones, Y12-24 and -61, which showed specific loss of one Hinf I fragment of type B mtDNA, B10. These observations suggest that, in contrast to the case with plant mtDNA, recombination of mammalian mtDNA occurs rarely, if at all.     

3'-azido-3'-deoxythymidine. An unusual nucleoside analogue that permeates the membrane of human erythrocytes and lymphocytes by nonfacilitated diffusion

The demonstrated in vitro and in vivo activity of 3'-azido-3'-deoxythymidine (N3dThd) against the infectivity and the cytopathic effect of human immunodeficiency virus has prompted an investigation of the mechanism by which this nucleoside analogue permeates the cell membrane. As with the transport of thymidine, the influx of N3dThd into human erythrocytes and lymphocytes was nonconcentrative during short incubation times (less than 5 min) which did not allow significant metabolism of this nucleoside. However, in contrast with thymidine transport, the initial velocity of N3dThd influx was strictly a linear function of nucleoside concentration (0.5-10 mM), without evidence of saturability; insensitive to micromolar concentrations of potent inhibitors of nucleoside transport (dipyridamole, 6-[(4-nitrobenzyl)thio]-9-beta-D-ribofuranosylpurine, and dilazep); insensitive to a 1000-fold excess of other nucleosides (thymidine, uridine, 2-chloroadenosine); and relatively insensitive to temperature, with Q10 values (37-27 degrees C) of 1.4 and 2.7 for N3dThd and thymidine, respectively, determined in erythrocytes. Although the above results indicate that N3dThd permeates the cell membrane chiefly by nonfacilitated diffusion and not via the nucleoside transporter, millimolar concentrations of this nucleoside analogue were observed to inhibit both zero-trans influx of thymidine and efflux of thymidine from [3H]thymidine-loaded erythrocytes. The partition coefficients (1-octanol:0.1 M sodium phosphate, pH 7.0) of N3dThd and thymidine were determined to be 1.26 and 0.064, respectively. The unusual ability of N3dThd to diffuse across cell membranes independently of the nucleoside transport system may be attributed to the considerable lipophilicity imparted to this molecule by the replacement of the 3'-hydroxyl group of thymidine with an azido moiety.     

Engineering of a single conserved amino acid residue of herpes simplex virus type 1 thymidine kinase allows a predominant shift from pyrimidine to purine nucleoside phosphorylation

Studies of herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) thymidine (dThd) kinase (TK) crystal structures show that purine and pyrimidine bases occupy distinct positions in the active site but approximately the same geometric plane. The presence of a bulky side chain, such as tyrosine at position 167, would not be sterically favorable for pyrimidine or pyrimidine nucleoside analogue binding, whereas purine nucleoside analogues would be less affected because they are located further away from the phenylalanine side chain. Site-directed mutagenesis of the conserved Ala-167 and Ala-168 residues in HSV-1 TK resulted in a wide variety of differential affinities and catalytic activities in the presence of the natural substrate dThd and the purine nucleoside analogue drug ganciclovir (GCV), depending on the nature of the amino acid mutation. A168H- and A167F-mutated HSV-1 TK enzymes turned out to have a virtually complete knock-out of dThd kinase activity (at least approximately 4-5 orders of magnitude lower) presumably due to a steric clash between the mutated amino acid and the dThd ring. In contrast, a full preservation of the GCV (and other purine nucleoside analogues) kinase activity was achieved for A168H TK. The enzyme mutants also markedly lost their binding capacity for dThd and showed a substantially diminished feedback inhibition by thymidine 5'-triphosphate. The side chain size at position 168 seems to play a less important role regarding GCV or dThd selectivity than at position 167. Instead, the nitrogen-containing side chains from A168H and A168K seem necessary for efficient ligand discrimination. This explains why A168H-mutated HSV-1 TK fully preserves its GCV kinase activity (Vmax/Km 4-fold higher than wild-type HSV-1 TK), although still showing a severely compromised dThd kinase activity (Vmax/Km 3-4 orders of magnitude lower than wild-type HSV-1 TK).     

Repair replication in cultured normal and transformed human fibroblasts.

Repair replication in response to ultraviolet irradiation has been studied in normal human diploid fibroblast cultures, W138, and an SV40 transformant, VA13. Quantitative comparisons have been made using the combined isotopic and density labeling method for assaying repair replication. We find no significant difference in the amount of repair replication performed its dose response, or the time course between growing and confluent W138 cells, early passage and senescent cells, or normal W138 cells and the transformed VA13 cells. When [3H]dThd was employed as the isotopic label in the presence of a 30-200 fold excess of unlabelled BrdUrd, apparent differences in repair replication were seen between W138 cells shortly after subcultivation and cells which had been allowed to reach confluence. These differences were the same over a wide dose range and regardless of the passage number of the cells, but could be influenced by using different serum lots. The differences were not seen, however, when [3H]BrdUrd provided the isotopic label; thus they reflect either impurities in the [3H]dThd or a slight discrimination by some cellular process.