Reduction of oxidation during the preparation of DNA and analysis of 8-hydroxy-2'-deoxyguanosine.

The promutagenic base 8-hydroxy-2'-deoxyguanosine (8-OH-dG) in DNA is known to be formed from oxygen radical attack on 2'-deoxyguanosine (dG) as a result of oxidative stress. Formation of 8-OH-dG from dG during workup is strongly dependent on temperature and transition metals and is mediated by oxygen radicals. The 8-OH-dG formation at temperatures between 0 and 140 degrees C for 1.5 h in an "ultrapure" solution followed a third-order equation. Fe2+ in the nM range mediated the formation of 8-OH-dG from dG without addition of H2O2. Fe3+, Cu+, and Cu2+ were shown to have weaker oxidative effects in comparison to Fe2+. The pH (5.0-9.0) had a very limited effect on 8-OH-dG formation. Acid phosphatase, which contains iron at its active site, caused the formation of 8-OH-dG, whereas alkaline phosphatase did not. Phenol was not found to be oxidative. Fe2+-catalyzed formation of 8-OH-dG was completely blocked by the nitroxide 2,2,6,6-tetramethylpiperidine-N-oxyl (TEMPO), whereas DMSO, mannitol, and DMPO had a significantly weaker protecting effect. Catalase cleaved the dG molecule and was not suitable for use. A simple, fast, and inexpensive method for 8-OH-dG workup and analysis was developed, and the background level seen in liver from 13-week-old male Sprague-Dawley rat was 0.23 +/- 0.020 8-OH-dG/10(5) dG, which is up to 200 times lower than reported values from some other methods and up to 26 times lower when compared to other reports using HPLC-EC methods. In summary, the TEMPO method reduces oxidation of dG to 8-OH-dG during workup by (1) using chemicals low in transition metals, (2) using a cold workup procedure, (3) limiting the incubation time, and (4) using the nitroxide TEMPO in all steps.