PHOTODYNAMIC INHIBITION OF ESCHERICHIA COLI DNA POLYMERASE I BY 8-METHOXYPSORALEN PLUS NEAR ULTRAVIOLET IRRADIATION

Abstract— Morphological abnormality due to the UV irradiation of sperm and its modification by photoreactivation (PR) were studied in the sea urchin, Hemicentrotus pukherrimus. When sperm was UV-irradiated and allowed to fertilize unirradiated eggs, the effect of the UV was manifested as an abnormal morphology of embryos in the gastrula or later stages. The UV-induced morphological abnormality was prevented by photoreactivation when the fertilized eggs were illuminated with visible light. In the experiments on a stage-dependent change of PR effectiveness, it was found that an illumination sufficed to effect a nearly complete PR when applied up to the onset of the first DNA synthetic phase, while the PR effectiveness declined thereafter. Illumination after the completion of DNA synthesis had little effect for PR.