Molecular Pharmacology, Vol 7, 645-652, Copyright © 1971 by the American Society for Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics

Fragmentation of Deoxyribonucleic Acid by Bleomycin

¹ Section of Molecular Biology, The University of Texas at Houston, M. D. Anderson Hospital and Tumor Institute, Houston, Texas 77025

The ability of the antibiotic bleomycin to cause single- as well as double-strand breaks in deoxyribonucleic acid in vitro has been confirmed. Heat-denatured, single-stranded DNA is considerably more sensitive to the action of bleomycin than is native DNA. The rate of the reaction of DNA breakage by bleomycin is enhanced in the presence of 2-mercaptoethanol; however, 2-mercaptoethanol also inactivates bleomycin. This inactivation reaction is especially rapid at 80°, although bleomycin itself is stable to heating at 100° for 10 min. Bleomycin alone causes the fragmentation of DNA upon prolonged incubation, and therefore the presence of the reducing agent is not obligatory. In the presence of high concentrations of bleomycin, the DNA is degraded to the level of free nucleotides, nucleosides, or bases.

Note:
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The author wishes to thank Miss Kay Weiss and Mrs. Elsie Jackson for their excellent technical assistance.

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