p53-degradation by HPV-16 E6 preferentially affects the removal of cyclobutane pyrimidine dimers from non-transcribed strand and sensitizes mammary epithelial cells to UV-irradiation

Comparative Analysis of Alpha and Beta HPV E6 Oncoproteins: Insights into Functional Distinctions and Divergent Mechanisms of Pathogenesis

Human papillomaviruses (HPVs) represent a diverse group of DNA viruses that infect epithelial cells of mucosal and cutaneous tissues, leading to a wide spectrum of clinical outcomes. Among various HPVs, alpha (α) and beta (β) types have garnered significant attention due to their associations with human health. α-HPVs are primarily linked to infections of the mucosa, with high-risk subtypes, such as HPV16 and HPV18, being the major etiological agents of cervical and oropharyngeal cancers. In contrast, β-HPVs are predominantly associated with cutaneous infections and are commonly found on healthy skin. However, certain β-types, notably HPV5 and HPV8, have been implicated in the development of non-melanoma skin cancers in immunocompromised individuals, highlighting their potential role in pathogenicity. In this review, we comprehensively analyze the similarities and differences between α- and β-HPV E6 oncoproteins, one of the major drivers of viral replication and cellular transformation, and how these impact viral fitness and the capacity to induce malignancy. In particular, we compare the mechanisms these oncoproteins use to modulate common cellular processes-apoptosis, DNA damage repair, cell differentiation, and the immune response-further shedding light on their shared and distinct features, which enable them to replicate at divergent locations of the human body and cause different types of cancer.

Cervical cancer cell lines are sensitive to sub-erythemal UV exposure

High risk human papillomavirus (HPV) infections are the causative agent in virtually every cervical cancer as well as a host of other anogenital and oropharyngeal malignancies. These viruses must activate DNA repair pathways to facilitate their replication, while avoiding the cell cycle arrest and apoptosis that can accompany DNA damage. HPV oncoproteins facilitate each of these goals, but also reduce genome stability. Our data dissect the cytotoxic and cytoprotective characteristics of HPV oncogenes in cervical cancer cells. These data show that while the transformation of keratinocytes by HPV oncogene leaves these cells more sensitive to UV, the oncogenes also protect against UV-induced apoptosis. Cisplatin and UV resistant cervical cancer cell lines were generated and probed for their sensitivity to genotoxic agents. Cervical cancer cells can acquire resistance to one DNA crosslinking agent (UV or cisplatin) without gaining broad tolerance of crosslinked DNA. Further, cisplatin resistance may or may not result in sensitivity to PARP1 inhibition.

Human papillomavirus and genome instability: from productive infection to cancer

Infection with high oncogenic risk human papillomavirus types is the etiological factor of cervical cancer and a major cause of other epithelial malignancies, including vulvar, vaginal, anal, penile and head and neck carcinomas. These agents affect epithelial homeostasis through the expression of specific proteins that deregulate important cellular signaling pathways to achieve efficient viral replication. Among the major targets of viral proteins are components of the DNA damage detection and repair machinery. The activation of many of these cellular factors is critical to process viral genome replication intermediates and, consequently, to sustain faithful viral progeny production. In addition to the important role of cellular DNA repair machinery in the infective human papillomavirus cycle, alterations in the expression and activity of many of its components are observed in human papillomavirus-related tumors. Several studies from different laboratories have reported the impact of the expression of human papillomavirus oncogenes, mainly E6 and E7, on proteins in almost all the main cellular DNA repair mechanisms. This has direct consequences on cellular transformation since it causes the accumulation of point mutations, insertions and deletions of short nucleotide stretches, as well as numerical and structural chromosomal alterations characteristic of tumor cells. On the other hand, it is clear that human papillomavirus-transformed cells depend on the preservation of a basal cellular DNA repair activity level to maintain tumor cell viability. In this review, we summarize the data concerning the effect of human papillomavirus infection on DNA repair mechanisms. In addition, we discuss the potential of exploiting human papillomavirus-transformed cell dependency on DNA repair pathways as effective antitumoral therapies.

p53-dependent radiobiological responses to internalised indium-111 in human cells

INTRODUCTION

The p53 tumour suppressor protein plays a pivotal role in the response of mammalian cells to DNA damage. It regulates cell cycle progression, apoptosis and DNA repair mechanisms and is therefore likely to influence response to targeted radionuclide therapy. This study investigated the role of p53 in the cellular response to the Auger-emitting radionuclide indium-111.

METHODS

Two stable clones of a HT1080 fibrosarcoma cell line, differing only in p53 status due to RNAi-mediated knockdown of p53 expression, were incubated for 1 h with [¹¹¹In]-oxinate (0-10 MBq/ml). Radiopharmaceutical uptake into HT1080 cells was measured in situ using a non-contact phosphorimager method. Cellular sensitivity and DNA damage were measured by, respectively, clonogenic survival analysis and the single cell gel electrophoresis (Comet) assay.

RESULTS

Mean uptake of [¹¹¹In]-oxinate in HT1080 cells was unaffected by p53 status, reaching a maximum of 9Bq/cell. [¹¹¹In]-oxinate-induced cytotoxicity was also identical in both clones, as measured by IC50 (0.68 MBq/ml). However the formation of DNA damage, measured immediately after treatment with [¹¹¹In]-oxinate, was found to be up to 2.5-fold higher in the p53-deficient HT1080 clone.

CONCLUSIONS

The increased DNA damage induced in p53-deficient HT1080 cells suggests an early deficiency in the repair of DNA damage during the treatment period. However, the similarity in cellular sensitivity, irrespective of p53 status, suggests that reduced p53 leads to a concomitant reduction in p53-dependent cytotoxicity despite the persistence of DNA damage. The results may provide insight into how tumours that differ in p53 status respond to therapeutic radionuclides.

Defective DNA repair and cell cycle arrest in cells expressing Merkel cell polyomavirus T antigen

The pathways by which Merkel cell polyomavirus (MCV) infection contributes to the formation of Merkel cell carcinomas are important for understanding the pathogenesis of these cancers. We hypothesized that MCV T antigen suppresses normal responses to ultraviolet radiation (UVR)-induced DNA damage. An MCV-infected cell line (MKL-1) exhibited UVR hypersensitivity, impaired repair of DNA lesions and cell cycle arrest after UVR, as well as reduced levels of the DNA damage recognition protein, XPC. When ectopically expressed in uninfected UISO cells, mutant but not wild-type T antigen resulted in loss of repair of UVR-induced cyclobutane pyrimidine dimers and reductions in XPC, p53 and p21 levels, whereas both wild-type and mutant T antigen inhibited cell cycle arrest after UVR. Similarly, only mutant T antigen in normal fibroblasts inhibited DNA repair and XPC expression, while both mutant and wild-type T antigens produced cell cycle dysregulation. Wild-type T antigen expression produced large T, 57 kT and small T antigens while mutant T antigen was only detectable as a truncated large T antigen protein. Expression of wild-type large T antigen but not small T antigen inhibited the G1 checkpoint in UISO cells, but neither wild-type large T nor small T antigens affected DNA repair, suggesting that large T antigen generates cell cycle defects, and when mutated may also impair DNA repair. These results indicate that T antigen expression by MCV can inhibit key responses to UVR-induced DNA damage and suggest that progressive MCV-mediated abrogation of genomic stability may be involved in Merkel cell carcinogenesis.

p53 mutant human glioma cells are sensitive to UV-C-induced apoptosis due to impaired cyclobutane pyrimidine dimer removal

The p53 protein is a key regulator of cell responses to DNA damage, and it has been shown that it sensitizes glioma cells to the alkylating agent temozolomide by up-regulating the extrinsic apoptotic pathway, whereas it increases the resistance to chloroethylating agents, such as ACNU and BCNU, probably by enhancing the efficiency of DNA repair. However, because these agents induce a wide variety of distinct DNA lesions, the direct importance of DNA repair is hard to access. Here, it is shown that the induction of photoproducts by UV light (UV-C) significantly induces apoptosis in a p53-mutated glioma background. This is caused by a reduced level of photoproduct repair, resulting in the persistence of DNA lesions in p53-mutated glioma cells. UV-C-induced apoptosis in p53 mutant glioma cells is preceded by strong transcription and replication inhibition due to blockage by unrepaired photolesions. Moreover, the results indicate that UV-C-induced apoptosis of p53 mutant glioma cells is executed through the intrinsic apoptotic pathway, with Bcl-2 degradation and sustained Bax and Bak up-regulation. Collectively, the data indicate that unrepaired DNA lesions induce apoptosis in p53 mutant gliomas despite the resistance of these gliomas to temozolomide, suggesting that efficiency of treatment of p53 mutant gliomas might be higher with agents that induce the formation of DNA lesions whose global genomic repair is dependent on p53.

Impaired repair of cyclobutane pyrimidine dimers in human keratinocytes deficient in p53 and p63

While many p53-deficient cell types are impaired in global genomic nucleotide excision repair of cyclobutane pyrimidine dimers (CPDs), human epidermal keratinocytes expressing human papillomavirus type 16 E6 and E7 are p53 deficient and yet maintain repair of CPD. We hypothesized that the p53 homolog, p63, may participate in governing global repair instead of p53 in keratinocytes. Following ultraviolet radiation (UVR) of E6/E7 keratinocytes, depletion of p63 but not of p73 impaired global genomic repair of CPD relative to control cells. In all cases, repair of pyrimidine(6-4)pyrimidone photoproducts, the other major UVR-induced DNA lesions, was unaffected. In E6/E7 keratinocytes treated with p63 small interfering RNA, reduced global repair of CPD was associated not with reduced levels of messenger RNA-encoding DNA damage recognition proteins but rather with decreased levels of DDB2 and XPC proteins, suggesting that p63 posttranscriptionally regulates levels of these proteins. These results indicate that global repair may be regulated at multiple levels and suggest a novel role for p63 in modulating repair of DNA damage in human keratinocytes. The results may provide insight into mechanisms of genomic stability in epithelia infected with oncogenic human papilloma viruses and may further explain the lack of increased skin cancer incidence in Li-Fraumeni syndrome.

Frequency of Chromosome 17 Aneuploidy in Primary and Recurrent Pterygium by Interphase-Fluorescence in situ Hybridization

AIM

To investigate chromosome 17 numerical aberrations by using fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) in pterygia and to find out whether there is any association between chromosome 17 aneuploidy and recurrent pterygia.

METHODS

Pterygium tissue samples were taken from 21 patients by surgical excision. Eighteen of them had primary and 3 had recurrent pterygium. Peripheral whole blood interphase cells obtained from 11 healthy subjects were assigned as control group. The cells from pterygium tissue and peripheral blood were incubated with a hypotonic solution and fixed in order to obtain interphase nuclei. FISH analysis with chromosome-17-specific alpha-satellite DNA probe was performed on both the interphase nuclei of pterygium tissue (of patients) and peripheral whole blood cells of controls.

RESULTS

The mean percentage of chromosome 17 aneuploidy was 4.71% for the pterygia group and 4.41% for the controls. No significant difference of chromosome 17 aneuploidy was observed between the patients and the controls. When the group of patients with recurrences was compared with the group without recurrences, there was a significant difference in the frequency of chromosome 17 aneuploidy (U = 17, p = 0.029).

CONCLUSIONS

Chromosome 17 aneuploidy is probably not an important factor in the formation of pterygium, but it may be related to recurrence.

Differentiating human keratinocytes are deficient in p53 but retain global nucleotide excision repair following ultraviolet radiation

Terminally differentiating keratinocytes constitute the predominant cell type within the skin epidermis and play an important role in the overall photobiology of human skin following ultraviolet radiation. However, the DNA repair capacity of differentiating keratinocytes is unclear, and little is known regarding how such repair activity is regulated in these cells. We systematically compared the global genomic nucleotide excision repair response of cultured undifferentiated human keratinocytes to those that were allowed to differentiate in 1.2 mM Ca(2+), in some cases supplemented with phorbol ester or Vitamin C. Differentiated cells ceased replication and expressed typical markers of differentiation. Following ultraviolet radiation, keratinocytes that were differentiated up to 12 days removed cyclobutane pyrimidine dimers and pyrimidine(6,4)pyrimidone photoproducts from the global genome as efficiently as undifferentiated cells. However, following the onset of calcium-induced differentiation, basal levels of p53 were nearly undetectable by 12 days of differentiation when global repair activity was unaffected. Following ultraviolet radiation, induction of p53 following ultraviolet radiation was abrogated by 6 days of calcium-induced differentiation. Basal levels of mRNA encoding the DNA damage recognition proteins, XPC and DDB2, were relatively insensitive to differentiation and p53 levels. However, following ultraviolet radiation, inductions of mRNA encoding the DNA damage recognition proteins, DDB2 and XPC, were differentially affected by differentiation. Rapid loss of DDB2 mRNA induction was associated with differentiation, while XPC mRNA induction diminished more slowly with differentiation. These results indicate that human keratinocytes preserve global nucleotide excision repair as well as expression of genes encoding key DNA damage recognition proteins well into the terminal differentiation process, perhaps using mechanisms other than p53.

Proficient global nucleotide excision repair in human keratinocytes but not in fibroblasts deficient in p53

The p53 tumor suppressor protein is important for many cellular responses to DNA damage in mammalian cells, but its role in regulating DNA repair in human keratinocytes is undefined. We compared the nucleotide excision repair (NER) response of human fibroblasts and keratinocytes deficient in p53. Fibroblasts expressing human papillomavirus 16 E6 oncoprotein had impaired repair of UV radiation-induced cyclobutane pyrimidine dimers in association with reduced levels of p53 and XPC, which is involved in DNA damage recognition. In contrast, keratinocytes expressing E6 alone or concurrently with the E7 oncoprotein, while possessing reduced levels of p53 but normal levels of XPC, continued to repair pyrimidine dimers as efficiently as control cells with normal p53 levels. Despite preservation of DNA repair, E6 and E6/E7 keratinocytes were hypersensitive to UV radiation. E6 fibroblasts exhibited markedly reduced basal and induced levels of mRNA encoding DDB2, another protein implicated in early events in global NER. In contrast, E6 or E6/E7 keratinocytes possessed basal DDB2 mRNA levels that were not significantly altered relative to control cells, although little induction occurred following UV radiation. Intact global NER was also confirmed in SCC25 cells possessing inactivating mutations in p53 as well as in cells treated with pifithrin-alpha, a chemical inhibitor of p53 that decreased sensitivity of cells to UV radiation. Collectively, these results indicate that human keratinocytes, unlike fibroblasts, do not require p53 to maintain basal global NER activity, but p53 may still be important in mediating inducible responses following DNA damage.

Regulation of DNA damage recognition and nucleotide excision repair: another role for p53

In response to DNA damage, the p53 tumor suppressor gene product is activated leading to the induction of several downstream cellular processes including cell cycle checkpoints, DNA repair or apoptosis. Experiments first performed in the Hanawalt laboratory identified a p53-dependent pathway affecting global genomic nucleotide excision repair. The mechanisms involved in this process include both transcriptional and post-translational regulation by p53 of the DDB2 and XPC gene products, two critical DNA damage recognition proteins required for GGR. A historical review of this work is presented.

E6* oncoprotein expression of human papillomavirus type-16 determines different ultraviolet sensitivity related to glutathione and glutathione peroxidase antioxidant defence

Clinical observations of non-melanoma skin cancer in immunocompromised patients, such as organ transplant recipients, suggest co-operative effects of human papillomavirus (HPV) and ultraviolet (UV) radiation. The aim of the present study is to evaluate UV sensitivity and DNA damage formation according to antioxidant status in HPV16-infected keratinocytes. We used SKv cell lines, infected with HPV16 and well characterized for their proliferative and tumorigenic capacities. We showed that SKv cell lines presented various E6* (a truncated form of E6) RNA levels. We demonstrated that the higher oncoprotein RNA expression level was associated with a higher resistance to solar-simulated radiation, more specifically to UVB radiation and to hydrogen peroxide. Moreover, this high resistance was associated with a low oxidative DNA damage formation after UV radiation and was related to high glutathione content and glutathione peroxidase activities. Therefore, the results of our study suggest that E6* levels could modulate the glutathione/glutathione peroxidase pathway providing a mechanism to protect HPV-infected keratinocytes against an environmental oxidative stress, such as UV radiation.

Detection of epidermodysplasia verruciformis-associated human papillomavirus DNA in nongenital seborrhoeic keratosis

BACKGROUND

DNA of epidermodysplasia verruciformis (EV)-associated human papillomaviruses (HPVs) has been widely detected in lesions of malignant skin tumours, benign tumours and other proliferative diseases of epithelial origin.

OBJECTIVES

To investigate the presence of EV-associated HPV DNA in nongenital seborrhoeic keratosis (SK) and to elucidate the prevalence of distinct HPV genotypes.

METHODS

We investigated HPV DNA in 55 nongenital SK biopsies, which were compared with 48 normal skin biopsies (healthy controls) using a nested polymerase chain reaction (PCR) using consensus primers CP65/CP70 and CP66/CP69. The positive PCR products were retracted and used to prepare recombination clones with T-vector. Distinct clones were analysed with endonucleases, and HPV genotypes were identified by direct sequencing.

RESULTS

EV-associated HPV DNA was detected in 42 of 55 (76%) nongenital SK biopsies vs. only 13 of 48 (27%) healthy controls (chi2 = 22.087; P < 0.005). The prevalence was higher in patients with more than five lesions than in those with only one lesion (P < 0.05). Ten distinct HPV genotypes were detected in the nongenital SK biopsies: HPV 20, 23, 5, renal transplant recipient (RTR) X7, HPV 17, 37, 17b, RTRX4, RTRX4b and strain SK3. HPV 20 was found in 26 of 42 (62%) positive specimens, followed by HPV 23 (11 of 42, 26%) and HPV 5 (six of 42, 14%). Existence of multiple HPV genotypes was observed in 12 of 42 (29%) positive specimens. In healthy controls, five genotypes of EV-associated HPV (HPV 20, 23, 5, 17 and RTRX4) were detected, with the same predominant genotype of HPV 20 (five of 13, 38%). Several distinct HPV genotypes were found to coexist in four of 13 (31%) positive specimens.

CONCLUSIONS

This study provides some evidence that EV-associated HPVs might play a part in the pathogenesis of nongenital SK.

Sensitizing glioma cells to cisplatin by abrogating the p53 response with antisense oligonucleotides

Most gene therapy strategies related to p53 concentrate on the restoration of the activity of mutant p53, as several observations indicate that tumors and cell lines having the mutant gene are resistant to chemotherapy. However, as there is also some evidence to the contrary, we studied the relationship of the p53 status to the cellular response of glioma cells that were exposed to cisplatin. At a concentration of 2.5 microg/ml (which is about half the peak pharmacological blood level reached during chemotherapy), U373MG glioma cells, which had a mutant p53 gene, were more sensitive to the drug as compared to U87MG glioma cells (with normal p53). The U373MG cells responded with apoptosis while U87MG cells responded with a G2-M arrest. In U87MG cells, blocking the p53 response by antisense oligonucleotides also sensitized the cells to 2.5 microg/ml cisplatin, and shifted the cellular response from arrest to caspase 3-mediated apoptosis. A sensitive, p53-independent, mechanism for chemotherapy-induced apoptosis suggests that, in some cases, p53 abrogation by gene therapy or small molecule-based strategies could be a viable therapeutic strategy.

Cell Cycle Checkpoints, DNA Damage/Repair, and Lung Cancer Risk

Given that defects in cell cycle control and DNA repair capacity may contribute to tumorigenesis, we hypothesized that patients with lung cancer would be more likely than healthy controls to exhibit deficiencies in cell cycle checkpoints and/or DNA repair capacity as gauged by cellular response to in vitro carcinogen exposure. In an ongoing case-control study of 155 patients with newly diagnosed lung cancer and 153 healthy controls, we used the comet assay to investigate the roles of cell cycle checkpoints and DNA damage/repair capability in lung tumorigenesis. The median γ-radiation-induced and benzo(a)pyrene diol epoxide–induced Olive tail moments, the comet assay parameter for measuring DNA damage, were significantly higher in the case group (5.31 and 4.22, respectively) than in the control group (4.42 and 2.83, respectively; P &lt; 0.001). Higher tail moments of γ-radiation and benzo(a)pyrene diol epoxide–induced comets were significantly associated with 2.32- and 4.49-fold elevated risks, respectively, of lung cancer. The median γ-radiation-induced increases of cells in the S and G2 phases were significantly lower in cases (22.2% and 12.2%, respectively) than in controls (31.1% and 14.9%, respectively; P &lt; 0.001). Shorter durations of the S and G2 phases resulted in 4.54- and 1.85-fold increased risks, respectively, of lung cancer. Also observed were joint effects between γ-radiation-induced increases of S and G2 phase frequencies and mutagen-induced comets. In addition, we found that in controls, the S phase decreased as tail moment increased. This study is significant because it provides the first molecular epidemiologic evidence linking defects in cell cycle checkpoints and DNA damage/repair capacity to elevated lung cancer risk.

Expression of hepatitis B virus X oncoprotein inhibits transcription-coupled nucleotide excision repair in human cells

The hepatitis B virus X protein (HBx) is implicated in liver cancer development, and this presumably involves its ability to bind and functionally inactivate the p53 tumour suppressor. For example expression of HBx in cultured cells has been shown to inhibit global nucleotide excision repair, a p53-dependent subpathway of nucleotide excision repair (NER) which eliminates helix-distorting DNA adducts, e.g., UV-induced cyclobutane pyrimidine dimers (CPDs), from the genome overall. However it remains undetermined whether HBx also interferes with transcription-coupled NER (TCNER), another NER subpathway which removes DNA adducts uniquely from the transcribed strand (TS) of active genes. To address this, we employed the model human lymphoblastoid strain TK6 and its isogenic p53-null counterpart NH32, in conjunction with derivatives of these strains constitutively expressing HBx (TK6-HBx and NH32-HBx). Relative to TK6, following exposure to either UVB (290-320 nm) or UVC (254 nm), TK6-HBx, NH32 and NH32-HBx manifested significantly reduced apoptotic capacity to varying degrees, although no striking differences in clonogenic survival between the four strains were observed. As previously documented in our laboratory [Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. 100 (2003) 7219-7224], ligation-mediated PCR analysis revealed NH32 to be deficient compared with TK6 in CPD removal along the TS strand of the chromosomal c-jun locus following UVB exposure, but to be proficient in this respect following UVC exposure, i.e., the requirement for p53 in TCNER exhibits wavelength dependence in human cells. Remarkably however, in contrast to the situation for NH32, TK6-HBx and NH32-HBx manifested defective repair along the TS of c-jun after irradiation with either UVB or UVC. The data demonstrate that HBx expression can reduce the efficiency of TCNER in addition to GNER in human cells via p53-independent as well as p53-dependent pathways.

Repair of UV-induced thymine dimers is compromised in cells expressing the E6 protein from human papillomaviruses types 5 and 18

Ultraviolet (UV) irradiation is a major mutagenic environmental agent, causing the appearance of DNA adducts that, if unrepaired, may give rise to mutations. Ultraviolet radiation has been indicated as a major risk factor in the development of nonmelanoma skin cancers; however, recent reports have suggested that infections with human papillomaviruses, a widespread family of epitheliotropic DNA viruses, may also contribute to the tumorigenic process. Here, we investigated whether expression of the E6 protein from different HPV types interfere with the repair of thymine dimers caused by UV-B radiation. Results show that unrepaired DNA damage can be observed in UV-B-irradiated cells expressing the E6 protein of HPV types found in cervical and epithelial cancers. Moreover, such cells have the ability to overcome the G(1) cell cycle checkpoint induced as a result of unrepaired DNA.

Pathogenesis of pterygia: role of cytokines, growth factors, and matrix metalloproteinases

Pterygium is a common ocular surface disease apparently only observed in humans. Chronic UV exposure is a widely accepted aetiological factor in the pathogenesis of this disease and this concept is supported by epidemiological data, ray tracing models and histopathological changes that share common features with UV damaged skin. The mechanism(s) of pterygium formation is incompletely understood. Recent data have provided evidence implicating a genetic component, anti-apoptotic mechanisms, cytokines, growth factors, extracellular matrix remodelling (through the actions of matrix metalloproteinases), immunological mechanisms and viral infections in the pathogenesis of this disease. In this review, the current knowledge on pterygium pathogenesis is summarised, highlighting recent developments. In addition, we provide novel data further demonstrating the complexity of this intriguing disease.

p53 and regulation of DNA damage recognition during nucleotide excision repair

In response to a variety of types of DNA damage, the p53 tumor suppressor gene product is activated and regulates a number of downstream cellular processes such as cell cycle arrest, apoptosis and DNA repair. Recent discoveries concerning the regulation of DNA repair processes by p53, such as nucleotide excision repair (NER) and base excision repair (BER) have paved the way for studies to understand the mechanisms governing p53-dependent DNA repair. Although several theories have been proposed, accumulating evidence points to a transcriptional regulatory role for p53 in NER, mediating expression of the global genomic repair (GGR)-specific damage recognition genes, DDB2 and XPC. In BER, a more direct role for p53 has been proposed, potentially acting through protein-protein interactions with BER specific factors. These advances have greatly enhanced our understanding of the role of p53 in DNA repair and this review comprehensively summarizes current opinions on the mechanisms of p53-dependent DNA repair.

p53 is a chromatin accessibility factor for nucleotide excision repair of DNA damage

One of the longest standing problems in DNA repair is how cells relax chromatin in order to make DNA lesions accessible for global nucleotide excision repair (NER). Since chromatin has to be relaxed for efficient lesion detection, the key question is whether chromatin relaxation precedes lesion detection or vice versa. Chromatin accessibility factors have been proposed but not yet identified. Here we show that p53 acts as a chromatin accessibility factor, mediating UV-induced global chromatin relaxation. Using localized subnuclear UV irradiation, we demonstrate that chromatin relaxation is extended over the whole nucleus and that this process requires p53. We show that the sequence for initiation of global NER is as follows: transcription-associated lesion detection; p53-mediated global chromatin relaxation; and global lesion detection. The tumour suppressor p53 is crucial for genomic stability, a role partially explained by its pro-apoptotic capacity. We demonstrate here that p53 is also a fundamental component of DNA repair, playing a direct role in rectifying DNA damage.

Efficient repair of bulky anti-BPDE DNA adducts from non-transcribed DNA strand requires functional p53 but not p21(waf1/cip1) and pRb

Wild-type p53 protein is known to regulate the global genomic repair (GGR), removing bulky chemical DNA adducts as well as cyclobutane pyrimidine dimers from the genome overall and from non-transcribed strands (NTS) in DNA. To investigate the role of cellular factor(s) relevant to p53 regulated DNA repair processes, we examined the repair kinetics of chemical carcinogen, anti-benzo[a]pyrene-diol epoxide (anti-BPDE), induced bulky DNA adducts in normal human mammary epithelial cells (HMECs) and HMEC transformed by human papillomavirus (HPV)-16E6 or -16E7 oncoproteins, which, respectively targets p53 or pRb proteins for degradation. The results show that the removal of anti-BPDE DNA adducts from the genome overall and NTS by GGR was significantly reduced in HPV-16E6 protein expressing cells as compared to that in normal and HPV-16E7 protein expressing cells, indicating the role of p53 and not pRb in nucleotide excision repair (NER). We further determined the potential effects of the p53-regulated p21(waf1/cip1) gene product in NER in human colon carcinoma, HCT116 cells expressing wild-type p53 but different p21(waf1/cip1) genotypes (p21+/+, p21+/-, p21-/-). The results donot show a discernible difference in the removal of anti-BPDE DNA adducts from the genome overall and the transcribed strand (TS) and NTS irrespective of the presence or absence of p21(waf1/cip1) expression. Based on these results, we suggest that: (i) the wild-type p53 function but not p21(waf1/cip1) expression is necessary for GGR of chemical induced bulky DNA adducts; (ii) the Rb gene product does not play a significant role in NER; and (iii) the modulation of NER by p53 may be independent of its function in the regulation of cell cycle arrest upon chemically induced DNA damage.

Sensitivity of p53-deficient cells to oxaliplatin and thio-TEPA (N, N', N" triethylenethiophosphoramide)

P53 is known as a determinant of cellular responses to DNA damage, including apoptosis, cell cycle arrest, and DNA repair. Its role is most easily understood in the context of Burkitt lymphoma and other apoptosis-prone cell types. A number of epithelial cancer cell types, by contrast, exhibit a higher threshold for apoptosis induction in response to DNA damage. In fact, p53 mediates DNA repair and protective responses in the latter cell types, in some cases p53-deficient cells being more sensitive to DNA damage, antithetical to the situation in Burkitt lymphoma and other apoptosis-prone cell types. Ultraviolet light, cisplatin, and nitrogen mustards produce damage that is repaired by a p53-regulated pathway. Here, we explore the sensitivity of the platinum compound oxaliplatin and thio-TEPA (N, N', N", triethylenethiophosphoramide), a cancer chemotherapeutic agent that produces largely base damage, in p53-defective cells. This work demonstrates that the contribution of p53 temporally correlates with DNA repair pathways to produce a resistant phenotype, while the p53-defective cells are more sensitive to certain DNA-damaging chemotherapeutic agents.

Human cells deficient in p53 regulated p21(waf1/cip1) expression exhibit normal nucleotide excision repair of UV-induced DNA damage

Cancer development requires the accumulation of numerous genetic changes, which are believed to initiate through the presence of unrepaired lesions in the genome. In the absence of proficient repair, genotoxic agents can lead to crucial mutations of vital cellular genes via replication of damaged DNA. Many cell cycle regulatory proteins are known to modulate the repair capacity and consequently the fate of cells. We and others have recently shown that p53 tumor suppressor gene product is required for efficient global genomic repair (GGR) but not the transcription coupled repair (TCR) of the nucleotide excision repair (NER) sub-pathways. In order to discern the nature of the p53 modulation to be direct or indirect through a downstream mediator, we have investigated the processing of UV radiation induced lesions in human colon carcinoma, HCT116 cells expressing wild-type p53 but having different p21(waf1cip1) (hereafter p21) genotypes (p21+/+, p21+/-, p21-/-). Following 20 J/m(2) UV, all the three cell lines showed rapid increase in p53 protein but the accompanying increase in the expression of its downstream target protein p21 could only be seen in p21+/+ and p21+/- cells and not in p21-/- cells. Nevertheless, an absence of detectable p21 protein in deficient cells had no demonstrable effect on DNA repair response to UV irradiation, as measured by an immunoassay to detect removal of UV photoproducts from genomic DNA (GGR) and by individual strand specific removal of endonuclease-sensitive CPD from a target gene fragment (TCR). Introduction of cytomegalovirus (CMV)-driven luciferase reporter plasmid, UV damaged in vitro, into the un-irradiated cells of varying p21 background, revealed a relatively small but statistically significant decrease in the reporter expression in the host p21-/- as compared with p21+/+ and p21+/- HCT116 cells. Super-expression of p21 protein upon reintroduction of p21 expression construct, showed an enhanced recovery of UV damaged reporter activity that was not greatly different from a similar enhancement observed with undamaged plasmid reporter DNA. Taken together, the results indicate that (i) the p21 protein does not have a significant role in the repair of genomic DNA at chromosomal level; (ii) the well-established p53 dependent modulation of NER is distinct and independent of its cell cycle checkpoint function; and (iii) the reproducible enhancing effect of p21 expression observed through host cell reactivation (HCR) of extrachromosomal DNA is mainly attributable to an effect exerted on transcription rather than repair.

Human urinary bladder epithelial cells lacking wild-type p53 function are deficient in the repair of 4-aminobiphenyl-DNA adducts in genomic DNA

The effect of the tumor suppressor gene TP53 on repair of genomic DNA damage was examined in human urinary bladder transitional cell carcinoma (TCC) cell lines. Utilizing TCC10 containing wild-type p53 (wt-p53) as the parental line, an isogenic set of cell lines was derived by retroviral infection that expressed a transdominant mutant p53 (Arg --> His at codon 273, TDM273-TCC10), or the human papilloma virus 16-E6 oncoprotein (E6-TCC10). 32P-postlabeling analyses were performed on DNA from TCC cultures obtained after treatment with N-hydroxy-4-aminobiphenyl (N-OH-ABP), N-hydroxy-4-acetylaminobiphenyl (N-OH-AABP) and N-acetoxy-4-acetylaminobiphenyl (N-OAc-AABP). The major adduct was identified as N-(deoxyguanosin-8-yl)-4-aminobiphenyl (dG-C8-ABP) with all three chemicals. The amount of adducts in urothelial DNA ranged between 0.1 and 20 per 10(6) nucleotides, N-OAc-AABP yielding the highest levels, followed by N-OH-ABP and N-OH-AABP. To determine, if the functional status of p53 affects the rate of repair of dG-C8-ABP in genomic DNA, TCC10 and the TDM273-TCC10 and E6-TCC10 isotypes were exposed to N-OH-AABP for 12h and the DNA damage was allowed to repair up to 24h. The adduct levels were quantified and compared between the TCC10 isotypes. The amounts of dG-C8-ABP that remained in genomic DNA from E6-TCC10 and TDM273-TCC10 were approximately two-fold higher, as compared to the parental TCC10. At the dose used for DNA repair studies, N-OH-AABP or N-OAc-AABP did not induce apoptosis in TCC10. However, N-OAc-AABP at high doses (>5 microM) induced apoptosis, as evidenced by DNA fragmentation analyses. Furthermore, N-OAc-AABP-mediated apoptosis was independent of the functional status of wt-p53, since both E6-TCC10 and the parental TCC10 exhibited DNA fragmentation following treatment. These results suggest that p53 might modulate the repair of DNA adducts generated from the human bladder carcinogen ABP in its target human uroepithelial cells. This implies that in p53 null cells the unrepaired DNA damage could cause accumulation of mutation, which might contribute to increased genomic instability and neoplastic progression.

Effects of XPD mutations on ultraviolet-induced apoptosis in relation to skin cancer-proneness in repair-deficient syndromes

To understand the relationship between DNA repair, apoptosis, transcription, and cancer-proneness, we have studied the apoptotic response and the recovery of RNA synthesis following ultraviolet C and ultraviolet B irradiation in nucleotide excision repair deficient diploid fibroblasts from the cancer-prone xeroderma pigmentosum (XP) syndrome patients and the non-cancer-prone trichothiodystrophy (TTD) patients. Analysis of four XPD and four TTD/XPD fibroblast strains presenting different mutations on the XPD gene has shown that XPD cells are more sensitive to ultraviolet-induced apoptosis than TTD/XPD cells, and this response seems to be modulated by the type and the location of the mutation on the XPD gene. Moreover, the other xeroderma pigmentosum fibroblast strains analyzed (groups A and C) are more sensitive to undergo apoptosis after ultraviolet irradiation than normal human fibroblasts, showing that the cancer-proneness of xeroderma pigmentosum patients is not due to a deficiency in the ultraviolet-induced apoptotic response. We have also found that cells from transcription-coupled repair deficient XPA, XPD, TTD/XPD, and Cockayne's syndrome patients undergo apoptosis at lower ultraviolet doses than transcription-coupled repair proficient cells (normal human fibroblasts and XPC), indicating that blockage of RNA polymerase II at unrepaired lesions on the transcribed strand is the trigger. Moreover, XPD and XPA cells are more sensitive to ultraviolet-induced apoptosis than trichothiodystrophy and Cockayne's syndrome fibroblasts, suggesting that both cyclobutane pyrimidine dimers and pyrimidine 6-4 pyrimidone on the transcribed strand trigger apoptosis. Finally, we show that apoptosis is directly proportional to the level of inhibition of transcription, which depends on the density of ultraviolet-induced lesions occurring on transcribed sequences.

P53 plays a protective role against UV- and cisplatin-induced apoptosis in transcription-coupled repair proficient fibroblasts

We previously reported that transcription-coupled repair (TCR)-deficient human fibroblasts are extremely sensitive to UV-induced apoptosis and this sensitivity correlated with the induction of the p53 tumour suppressor. However, we have also found that p53 can be protective against UV-induced apoptosis. Thus, prior to this study, it was not clear whether the induction of p53 in TCR-deficient fibroblasts contributed to their death. To address this issue, we have expressed human papillomavirus E6 (HPV-E6) in primary fibroblasts derived from patients affected with xeroderma pigmentosum (complementation groups A, B and C) and Cockayne syndrome (complementation group B). We found that TCR-deficient (XP-A, XP-B and CS-B) fibroblasts were more sensitive than TCR-proficient cells (XP-C and normal) to both UV light and cisplatin treatment and this increase in sensitivity was not p53 dependent. Importantly, HPV-E6 expression increased the sensitivity of TCR-proficient normal and XP-C fibroblasts to UV- and cisplatin-induced apoptosis. This increase in sensitivity correlated with a decrease in the capacity of HPV-E6 expressing cells to recover mRNA synthesis following UV-irradiation. Therefore, we propose that p53 protects against UV- and cisplatin-induced apoptosis in a TCR-dependent manner and that p53 does not contribute strongly to the induction of apoptosis in TCR-deficient fibroblasts.

The p53-regulated cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor, p21 (cip1, waf1, sdi1), is not required for global genomic and transcription-coupled nucleotide excision repair of UV-induced DNA photoproducts

The p53 tumor suppressor gene is a transcriptional activator involved in cell cycle regulation, apoptosis, and DNA repair. We have shown that p53 is required for efficient nucleotide excision repair of UV-induced DNA photoproducts from global genomic DNA but has no effect on transcription-coupled repair. In order to evaluate whether p53 influences repair indirectly through cell cycle arrest following DNA damage or plays a direct role, we examined repair in vivo in human cells genetically altered to disrupt or regulate the function of p53 and p21. Both primary human fibroblasts and HCT116 colon carcinoma cells wild type for p53 but in which the p21 gene was inactivated through targeted homologous recombination showed no decrease in global repair of UV photoproducts. Human bladder carcinoma cells mutant for p53 and containing a tetracycline-regulated p21 cDNA showed no significant enhancement of repair upon induction of p21 expression. All of the cell lines, including the mismatch repair-deficient, MLH1 mutant HCT116 cells, were proficient for transcription-coupled repair. Clonogenic survival of HCT116 cells following UV irradiation showed no dependence on p21. Therefore, our results indicate that p53-dependent nucleotide excision repair does not require the function of the p21 gene product and is independent of p53-regulated cell cycle checkpoints.