title: Relative contributions of levels of initial damage and repair of double-strand breaks to the ionizing radiation-sensitive phenotype of the Chinese hamster cell mutant, XR-V15B. Part II. Neutrons.
abstract: We have compared DNA double-strand break (dsb) induction and rejoining, using field-inversion gel electrophoresis, with survival in mutant (XR-V15B) and in wild-type parental (V79B) hamster cell lines after low dose neutron and X-irradiation. We found that neutrons do not appear to induce more dsbs than X-rays and deduce that increased sensitivity to neutrons is therefore not due to a higher initial yield of dsbs. Even with low doses of neutrons, there is a visible increase in the production of a smaller subset of DNA fragments which arise only after very high dose X-irradiation. In both cell lines, dsbs induced by neutrons are rejoined more slowly than those induced by X-rays. At long repair times (4 and 17 h) there are no significant differences in the fractions of unrejoined dsbs between neutrons and X-rays. We propose that neutron-induced dsbs have a higher probability of becoming lethal because they are more likely to be misrepaired during the slow stage of rejoining.
authors.affiliation: Cancer Research Campaign Gray Laboratory, Mount Vernon Hospital, Northwood, Middlesex, UK.
authors.forename: B P
authors.initials: BP
authors.lastname: Kysela
authors.forename: J E
authors.initials: JE
authors.lastname: Arrand
authors.forename: B D
authors.initials: BD
authors.lastname: Michael
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002470:Cell Survival; D006224:Cricetinae; D003412:Cricetulus; D004249:DNA Damage; D004260:DNA Repair; D009154:Mutation; D009502:Neutrons; D010641:Phenotype; D011831:Radiation Genetics