The effects of inhibitors of topoisomerase II and quinacrine on ultraviolet-light-induced DNA incision in normal and xeroderma pigmentosum fibroblasts.

The aim of our work was to investigate whether DNA topoisomerase II participates in the repair-specific incision of UV-irradiated genomic DNA. Therefore, the influence upon DNA incision of the topoisomerase II inhibitors (nalidixic and oxolinic acid, novobiocin and coumermycin A1) as well as the intercalating agent quinacrine has been measured in normal human fibroblasts using the alkaline elution technique. In addition, inhibition by novobiocin has been determined in fibroblast strains from 11 normal donors and from 16 xeroderma pigmentosum (XP) patients belonging to the complementation groups A, C, D, E, and XP variant. Nalidixic and oxolonic acid did not inhibit endonucleolytic cleavage, whereas novobiocin was a potent inhibitor of DNA incision. It was observed that in normal and in all XP strains 50% inhibition by novobiocin occurred on average in the dose range 315-590 microM. Since inhibition by novobiocin was not paralleled by that with the other topoisomerase II inhibitors nalidixic and oxolinic acid, it must be concluded that reduction of enzyme-catalysed breaks was not due to the participation of topoisomerase II in the incision step, but to the displacement of ATP at the binding site of the DNA-incising enzyme. This enzyme absolutely requires ATP as a cofactor for endonucleolytic cleavage. Quinacrine, however, inhibited DNA incision in normal fibroblasts at a mean Ki of 318 microM. Inhibition by this intercalating agent seems to be caused by structural perturbations in DNA, which render it a poor substrate for endonucleolytic cleavage.