title: Does measurement of oxidative damage to DNA have clinical significance?
abstract: Oxidative damage to DNA is the seemingly inevitable consequence of cellular metabolism. Furthermore, despite protective mechanisms, cellular levels of damage may increase under conditions of oxidative stress, arising from exposure to a variety of physical or chemical insults. Elevated levels of oxidatively damaged DNA have been measured in numerous diseases, and as a result, it has been hypothesised that such damage plays an integral role in the aetiology of that disease. This review examines the validity of this hypothesis, exploring the mechanisms by which oxidative DNA damage may lead to disease. We conclude that further validation of biomarkers of oxidative DNA damage, along with further elucidation of the role of damage in disease, may allow these biomarkers to become potentially useful clinical tools.
authors.affiliation: Radiation and Oxidative Stress Group, Department of Cancer Studies and Molecular Medicine, University of Leicester, Leicester Royal Infirmary, University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust, Leicester, LE2 7LX, UK. msc5@le.ac.uk
authors.forename: Marcus S
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Cooke
authors.forename: Ryszard
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Olinski
authors.forename: Mark D
authors.initials: MD
authors.lastname: Evans
mesh_terms: D015415:Biomarkers / Q000378:metabolism; D004249:DNA Damage; D004194:Disease; D006801:Humans; D018384:Oxidative Stress
chemical_list: D015415:Biomarkers