A functional in vitro cell-free system for studying DNA repair in isolated nuclei

Assessment of DNA repair is an important endpoint measurement when studying the biochemical mechanisms of the DNA damage response and when investigating the efficacy of chemotherapy, which often uses DNA-damaging compounds. Numerous in vitro methods to biochemically characterize DNA repair mechanisms have been developed so far. However, such methods have some limitations, which are mainly due to the lack of chromatin organization in the DNA templates used. Here we describe a functional cell-free system to study DNA repair synthesis in vitro, using G1-phase nuclei isolated from human cells treated with different genotoxic agents. Upon incubation in the corresponding damage-activated cytosolic extracts, containing biotinylated dUTP, nuclei were able to initiate DNA repair synthesis. The use of specific DNA synthesis inhibitors markedly decreased biotinylated dUTP incorporation, indicating the specificity of the repair response. Exogenously added human recombinant PCNA protein, but not the sensors of UV-DNA damage DDB2 and DDB1, stimulated UVC-induced dUTP incorporation. In contrast, a DDB2PCNA- mutant protein, unable to associate with PCNA, interfered with DNA repair synthesis. Given its responsiveness to different types of DNA lesions, this system offers an additional tool to study DNA repair mechanisms. This article has an associated First Person interview with the first author of the paper.