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DNA long-term stability and integrity is of importance for applications in DNA based bio-dosimetry, data-storage, pharmaceutical quality-control, donor insemination and DNA based functional nanomaterials. Standard protocols for these applications involve repeated freeze-thaw cycles of the DNA, which can cause detrimental damage to the nucleobases, as well as the sugar-phosphate backbone and therefore the whole molecule. Throughout the literature three hypotheses can be found about the underlying mechanisms occurring during freeze-thaw cycles. It is hypothesized that DNA single-strand breaks during freezing can be induced by mechanical stress leading to shearing of the DNA molecule, by acidic pH causing damage through depurination and beta elimination or by the presence of metal ions catalyzing oxidative damage via reactive oxygen species (ROS). Here we test these hypotheses under well defined conditions with plasmid DNA pUC19 in high-purity buffer (1xPBS) at physiological salt and pH 7.4 conditions, under pH 6 and in the presence of metal ions in combination with the radical scavengers DMSO and Ectoine. The results show for the 2686 bp long plasmid DNA, that neither mechanical stress, nor pH 6 lead to degradation during repeated freeze-thaw cycles. In contrast, the presence of metal ions (Fe2+) leads to degradation of DNA via the production of radical species.
Universität Berlin Radiation damage to biomolecules such as DNA, is the reason to treat cancer via radiation therapy. The understanding of the molecular processes and the quantification of the underlying damaging mechanisms is necessary to develope more efficient irradiation protocols for cancer therapy. Thereby damage to DNA is of key interest due to its central role in reproduction and mutation. Due to the high amount of water in biological tissue, most of the damage is caused by the secondary particles which are produced by the interaction of ionizing radiation with water. Thereby a multitude of species are produced, e.g. kinetic low energy electrons, prehydrated electrons, OH-radicals and ions. The quantification of the contribution to DNA damage by the various species is of interest. Here we present an experimental approach to disentangle their relative DNA strand break yields. Plasmid DNA (pUC19 ) is irradiated in water with electrons under the presence of different scavengers. The presented preliminary results reveal the relative contributions of OH-radicals, low energy electrons and prehydrated electrons and their DNA single and double strand break yields.
Structural changes in plasmid DNA caused by radiation and its protection by Ectoine: an AFM analysis
(2017)
Most ionizing radiation in water ends in an avalanche of low energy electrons which play a dominant role together with OH-radicals in damaging DNA. In the present study we irradiated plasmid DNA with electrons (primary energy 30keV) under physiological conditions, performed with as well as without Ectoine. Ectoine is a compatible solute, synthesized and accumulated in molar concentration within bacteria to withstand osmotic stress or different other stressors.
Plasmid DNA (pUC19, 2686 bp) was studied due to its supercoiled isoform which is highly sensitive to radiation damage. In biochemistry gel electrophoresis is applied for structural analysis of DNA. Although it is a standard technique, a reliable discrimination of short fragments caused by radiation is often difficult. AFM is also commonly used for imaging susceptible biomolecules and, since it is based on a single molecule observation, for analysis of contour lengths of linear DNA as well. Therefore, in our study the structural changes in plasmid DNA after irradiation with different doses were quantitatively analyzed by means of intermittent contact AFM. The figure shows representative AFM images of electron irradiated pUC19 DNA (bar=200nm). For AFM imaging the DNA was chemically fixed on ultra-smooth mica. As can be clearly seen, with increasing radiation dose the number of undamaged DNA declines and fragmented DNA arises (A, B). In aqueous Ectoine solution (1M) the effect of radiation on DNA is dramatically depressed. Ectoine apparently confers protection even against high radiation: the plasmids remain predominantly in the supercoiled isoform (D). Therefore, we strongly believe that Ectoine is a potent protective substance of DNA against ionizing radiation.
Tapping mode AFM (TM-AFM) is a standard technique to image biomolecules and cells avoiding damage to susceptible samples.
For preparing AFM samples we fixed (untreated and radiated) plasmids chemically on ultra-smooth mica silanized with APTES.
The recorded AFM images were examined concerning the contour length, the conformation and the writhing number of the plasmids.
We found that the measured contour length is in accordance with the number of base pairs. Apart from that, we indicate different structures of plasmids from our AFM images, which were assigned to our plasmid data from agarose gel-electrophoresis.