The patch size for excision repair of ultraviolet radiation (UV)-induced pyrimidine dimers was determined in cultured murine epithelial cells with normal and enhanced pyrimidine dimer repair capabilities. Cells with enhanced pyrimidine dimer repair were produced by transfecting 308 cells with the denV gene of bacteriophage T4; this gene encodes the enzyme endonuclease V. Pyrimidine dimer repair following exposure to UV from an FS-40 sunlamp was determined by micrococcal dimer-specific nuclease digestion and alkaline sucrose ultracentrifugation. Patch size was estimated based on the photolytic lability of bromodeoxyuridine-substituted DNA. Excision repair of UV-induced pyrimidine dimers in denV-transfected 308 cells was enhanced two- to threefold. Production of mRNA from the deny gene in cell lines with enhanced repair was confirmed by RNA blotting. In control cells, the patch size for excision repair of DNA photoproducts was estimated to be 34 nucleotides per photoproduct removed; in denV-transfected cells, a smaller average patch size of 10-16 nucleotides per photoproduct removed was calculated. Thus, endonuclease V activity appears to alter not only the extent, but also the nature of excision repair in UV-exposed mammalian epithelial cells.
