Photoreactivation of ultraviolet irradiated non-dividing populations of ICR 2A frog cells

Ultraviolet (UV) irradiation of non-dividing populations of ICR 2A frog cells led to their detachment from the surface of the culture dish and eventual lysis. Exposure of the cells to photoreactivating light after UV irradiation prevented cell killing and was accompanied by a loss of endonuclease sensitive sites from DNA. This photoreversal did not take place when the cells were exposed at 40C to photoreactivating light indicating that the reversal was the result of photoenzymatic repair. As the action of photoreactivating enzyme is specific for the repair of pyrimidine dimers in DNA, the results suggest that pyrimidine dimers in DNA are the critical lesions leading to the death of non-dividing populations of UV irradiated cells. (author)