Inhibition by 6-mercaptopurine of the binding of a benzo(a)pyrene diol-epoxide to DNA in Chinese hamster ovary cells

The finding that 7r,8t-dihydroxy-9,10-t-oxy-7,8,9,10-tetrahydrobenzo(a)pyrene (BPDE-I) is stabilized against hydrolysis by binding to cellular membranes suggested that nucleophilic compounds which would colocalize with BPDE-I in membranes might inhibit the deleterious biological effects of BPDE-I. We have explored the possibility that hydrophobic, sulfhydryl-containing compounds might provide such inhibition using the binding of BPDE-I to DNA in Chinese hamster ovary cells as a biological end point. Of several such compounds tested, 6-mercaptopurine (6-MP) was the most potent, exhibiting 50% inhibition of BPDE-I:DNA binding at about 30 microM and about 95% inhibition at 500 microM. 6-MP, at concentrations of 30 microM or greater, was also effective in preventing the induction of mutations by BPDE-I at the aprt locus. By varying the time of addition of the two compounds, it was shown that the action of 6-MP is intracellular. In vitro, 6-MP readily forms an adduct with BPDE-I, and the same adduct is found as a major metabolite in cells treated with BPDE-I and 6-MP. These findings are consistent with the hypothesis that 6-MP and BPDE-I colocalize in membranes of Chinese hamster ovary cells and form a covalent adduct, thus preventing the BPDE-I from interacting with critical cellular macromolecules such as DNA. Several nontoxic derivatives of 6-MP (9-methyl-6-MP, 2,6-dithiopurine) or analogues of 6-MP (4-mercapto-1H-pyrazolo[3,4-d]pyrimidine) were also tested in the Chinese hamster ovary cell system and found to inhibit binding of BPDE-I to DNA with potencies comparable to that of 6-MP.     

Heterogeneous repair of methylnitrosourea-induced alkali-labile sites in different DNA sequences

The repair of DNA damage induced by methylnitrosourea (MNU) in restriction fragments containing the dihydrofolate reductase (DHFR) gene in Chinese hamster ovary cells was compared to that in equal size restriction fragments containing a nontranscribed flanking sequence 3' to the DHFR gene or the c-fos gene. Following exposure to 10(-3) M MNU, restriction fragments containing either the DHFR gene or the 3' flanking sequence had similar amounts of alkali labile sites, approximately 2 sites/restriction fragment. Fragments encompassing the c-fos gene had less than 2 breaks/fragment. Twenty-four h after exposure to MNU a consistent, but slight and not statistically significant, difference was seen with more adducts removed from the DHFR gene than the 3' flanking sequence. No repair was detected in the c-fos containing fragments. In addition, the repair of N7-methylguanine in the overall genome was assessed by use of a 32P end-labeling technique. Seventy % of this major alkylation product was repaired after 24 h. These findings establish that repair heterogeneity occurs in Chinese hamster ovary cells after exposure to MNU.     

Denaturing gradient gel analysis of single-base substitutions at a mouse adenine phosphoribosyltransferase splice acceptor site

Denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) can detect single-base changes in DNA. We used site-directed mutagenesis to produce all six possible single-base substitutions at a splice acceptor consensus AG dinucleotide within the mouse adenine phosphoribosyltransferase (aprt) gene. Studies of mouse and Chinese hamster cell aprt indicate a high level of both spontaneous and induced mutations in this region. We systematically evaluated each of the six mutations by DGGE. Five of the six mutant sequences could be distinguished from wildtype by DGGE analysis of a 560-bp fragment containing the mutation. However, one mutant could not be distinguished from wild-type, and some of the mutant constructs could not be distinguished from each other. Analysis of DNA heteroduplexes consisting of wild-type and mutant strands or two different mutant strands enabled all mutant constructs to be distinguished from wild-type and from each other. The pairwise mixtures resulted in 24 different heteroduplexes, all of which were less stable than the parental homoduplexes. End labeling of DNA prior to heteroduplex formation and subsequent DGGE analysis enabled us to determine the relative destabilization caused by different types of single-base mismatches.     

口腔鳞癌细胞中ITGB6基因主要转录调控区域的定位分析

目的： 鉴定ITGB6基因在口腔鳞癌细胞中的主要调控区域,为研究ITGB6基因在口腔鳞癌细胞中的转录调控机制奠定基础。方法：构建含有ITGB6基因转录起始点上游5' 端侧翼区不同长度DNA序列的重组pGL2荧光素酶报告基因质粒,转染口腔鳞癌细胞株TCA8113和SAS,利用双荧光素酶报告基因系统检测启动子转录活性,并通过生物信息学方法预测ITGB6基因中潜在的主要转录因子结合位点。结果：获得一系列不同长度ITGB6基因5' 侧翼区序列的重组荧光素酶报告基因质粒;当ITGB6基因5' 端侧翼片段截短到-187～-35和-35～+27之间时,启动子活性均显著下降;生物信息学分析显示,在-187～-35区域有2个Ets-1的潜在结合位点,而在-35～+27区域有1个IRF-4潜在结合位点。结论：在口腔鳞癌细胞中,ITGB6基因-187~-35和-35~+27区域是主要的转录因子结合区。     

Mutations recovered in the Chinese hamster aprt gene after exposure to carboplatin: a comparison with cisplatin.

Platinum-based compounds such as cisplatin and carboplatin are currently used for the treatment of a variety of solid tumors. Their primary mode of action involves the production of cross-links in DNA. These compounds induce mutations in bacterial as well as in mammalian cells. Previously we determined the sequence specificity and mutational outcome in the Chinese hamster aprt gene in mutants isolated after exposure to cisplatin. The second-generation platinum drug, carboplatin, is of clinical relevance because it displays different and less toxic effects. Here we report the mutagenic specificity of this related compound. Mutations recovered after exposure to carboplatin display the same preference for sequences that contain 5'-AGG-3', 5'-AGA-3' and 5'-GAG-3' as was found for cisplatin. We thus conclude that the mutagenic outcome of exposure to carboplatin and cisplatin respectively, is similar, if not identical.     

5' upstream sequence and genomic structure of the human primary response gene, EGR-1/TIS8

EGR-1/TIS8 is a primary response gene that encodes a zinc finger containing protein and is induced in a number of cell types by a variety of ligands. We have isolated and mapped the human EGR-1/TIS8 gene and sequenced the 5' upstream flanking region. A 'TATA' homology and several putative regulatory elements, including two Sp1 sites, five serum response-like elements, two cAMP response-like elements, an EGR-1 binding site (EBS), and a tetra-decanoyl phorbol acetate (TPA)-responsive element have been identified within 700 nucleotides of the upstream region. We demonstrated that a 500-base pair fragment, which includes several of these possible regulatory sequences, is functional and responsive to TPA in transient transfection assays. A further understanding of the regulation and function of human EGR-1/TIS8 gene expression may provide insight into the mechanisms that control normal and neoplastic proliferation of human cells.