Increased sensitivity of cell strains from Cockayne's syndrome to sister-chromatid-exchange induction and cell killing by UV light.

Ultraviolet light-induced sister-chromatid exchanges (SCE) and cell killing were investigated in 4 fibroblast cell strains from patients with the sun-sensitive disease Cockayne's syndrome (CS). All 4 CS cell strains proved to be hypersensitive to UV for both of these end-points, but no close correlation between levels of SCE and lethality was observed. Cell strains from two individuals heterozygous for CS were indistinguishable from wild-type.