Abstract
We have studied the ability of 8-methoxycaffeine (8-MOC) - one of the most effective caffeine derivatives in inducing chromosomal aberrations - to induce DNA double strand breaks (DSB) in purified human T lymphocytes during the cell cycle. Etoposide- or ellipticine-mediated DNA break frequency was used as a parameter of topoisomerase II activity. DNA-DSB induced by either 8-MOC or VP16 or ellipticine rose co-ordinately with the level of DNA topoisomerase II and with the onset of DNA replication. At concentrations between 10 and 50 μM 8-MOC was ~75% as active in terms of DSB as VP16 and ellipticine. By contrast with VP16 and ellipticine, 8-MOC was not cytotoxic. In conclusion, our data suggest that 8-MOC is an agent that efficiently induces DNA-DSB at non-toxic concentrations, and without direct inhibition of topoisomerase II.
Original language | English |
---|---|
Pages (from-to) | 2491-2496 |
Number of pages | 6 |
Journal | Carcinogenesis |
Volume | 15 |
Issue number | 11 |
Publication status | Published - Nov 1994 |
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Cancer Research
- Statistics, Probability and Uncertainty
- Applied Mathematics
- Physiology (medical)
- Physiology
- Behavioral Neuroscience