The Effect of Tryptophan on UV-induced DNA Photodamage

Trp–DNA adducts resulting from UV irradiation of pyrimidine bases and nucleotides in the presence of tryptophan (Trp) have been the subject of previous research. However, the relative yield of the adducts compared with the UV screening effect of Trp has not been previously considered. To determine whether Trp–DNA adduct formation or absorption “screening” by Trp is the predominant process when DNA solutions are irradiated with UV light in the presence of Trp, we irradiated Trp-containing DNA oligonucleotide solutions with UVC light and incubated aliquots of those solutions with molecular beacons (MBs) to detect the damage. We observed a rapid decay of fluorescence of the MBs for pure DNA solutions, thereby indicating damage. However, in the presence of Trp, the fluorescence decay is prolonged, with time constants that increase exponentially with Trp concentration. The results are discussed in terms of a beneficial in vivo cellular protection rather than harmful adduct formation and suggest a net sacrificial absorption of UV light by Trp which actually protects the DNA from UV damage.     

水藓科植物遗传多样性研究

利用ISSR分子标记方法对不同地区的13份水藓科植物进行遗传多样性分析,结果表明,稳定且重复性高的7条引物共扩增出526条清晰的条带,其中518条具有多态性,平均多态性位点比率为98.47%.运用PopGen-32软件分析发现,等位基因数Na=1.736 3,有效等位基因数Ne=1.306 2,Nei基因的多样性与Shannon信息的指数分别为0.201 5和0.321 1,说明水藓科植物的遗传多样性比较丰富.13份水藓科植物的遗传分化系数Gst、遗传距离D与遗传一致度I分别为0.025 3、0.007 1和0.054 7,对其进行计算得知,不同属种间存有基因交流,但与种间变异相比,种群内部的遗传变异较大.通过NTSYS2.1软件对13份样本的亲缘关系进行聚类,可将其分为3类,且样本的遗传距离与地理位置有一定的相关性.