Suppressive effect of novobiocin on the frequency of chromosome-type aberrations induced by ara C in the G1 phase of human lymphocytes

1-beta-D-Arabinofuranosylcytosine (ara C) induces chromosome-type aberrations in mammalian cells by inhibiting repair replication in the G1 phase. The effect of novobiocin, an inhibitor of prokaryotic gyrases, on G1 repair in human cells was studied cytogenetically using this characteristic of ara C. The experiment was based on the assumption that if novobiocin inhibits the relaxation of chromatin required prior to repair replication, it would reduce the frequency of chromosome-type aberrations in cells treated with a mutagen followed by posttreatment with ara C. It has also been shown that in lymphocytes ara C induces chromosome-type aberrations which were not caused by any induced DNA lesion, and that the frequency of these aberrations changes with the age of the blood donor. The effect of novobiocin on the frequency of chromosome-type aberrations induced by ara C in lymphocytes without mutagen pretreatment was also investigated for blood samples from donors of different ages. Human peripheral blood lymphocytes, which were either untreated of treated with 4-nitroquinoline-N-oxide (4NQO) or methyl methanesulfonate (MMS), were posttreated in their early G1 phase with ara C only or ara C and novobiocin. The resulting chromosome-type aberrations were observed in cells in their first mitoses, and a comparison was made between the frequency of aberrations occurring in the presence of novobiocin and in its absence. The results showed that novobiocin reduced the frequency of chromosome-type aberrations induced by ara C in both mutagen-pretreated and -non-pretreated cells, and that lymphocytes from younger donors were less sensitive to novobiocin. The present study demonstrated cytogenetically the existence of a novobiocin-sensitive process to induce chromosome recombination in G1 lymphocytes.