title: Reduction in DNA repair capacity following differentiation of murine proadipocytes.
abstract: It has been suggested that terminally differentiated mammalian cells have a decreased DNA repair capacity, compared with proliferating stem cells. To investigate this hypothesis, we have examined gamma-ray-induced DNA strand breaks and their repair in the murine proadipocyte stem cell line 3T3-T. By exposure to human plasma, 3T3-T cells can be induced to undergo nonterminal and then terminal differentiation. DNA strand breaks were evaluated using the technique of alkaline elution. No difference was detected among stem, nonterminally differentiated, and terminally differentiated cells in the initial levels of radiation-induced DNA strand breaks. Each of the strand break dose response increased as a linear function of gamma-ray dose. The strand breaks induced by 4 Gy rejoined following biphasic kinetics for each cell type. At each time point examined after irradiation, however, the percentage of strand breaks that had not rejoined in terminally differentiated cells was three to six times greater than in stem cells. The rate of strand break rejoining in nonterminally differentiated cells was of an intermediate value between that of the stem and of the terminally differentiated cells. These results indicate that, at least for 3T3-T cells, differentiated cells have a reduced capacity for DNA repair.
authors.affiliation: Department of Experimental Radiotherapy, University of Texas M.D. Anderson Hospital and Tumor Institute, Houston 77030.
authors.forename: P J
authors.initials: PJ
authors.lastname: Tofilon
authors.forename: R E
authors.initials: RE
authors.lastname: Meyn
mesh_terms: D000273:Adipose Tissue / Q000166:cytology* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000528:radiation effects; D000818:Animals; D002454:Cell Differentiation; D002460:Cell Line; D004249:DNA Damage; D004260:DNA Repair; D004307:Dose-Response Relationship, Radiation; D005720:Gamma Rays; D007700:Kinetics; D051379:Mice; D008954:Models, Biological; D013234:Stem Cells / Q000166:cytology* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000528:radiation effects