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R Holliday

Publications and source records attributed to R Holliday.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1995

Evidence for gene silencing by DNA methylation in normal human diploid fibroblasts.

Human diploid fibroblasts, strain MRC-5, were permeabilized by electroporation and treated with 5-methyl deoxycytidine triphosphate (5-methyl dCTP) in the S phase of the cell cycle. The frequency of TGR HPRT- cells was increased up to 20-fold in comparison to control untreated cultures. Representative TGR clones were unable to grow in HAT, and these were treated with 5-azacytidine (5-aza-CR). In many cases subsequent growth in HAT medium was observed, but in others it is likely that the cells had run out of growth potential. The results provide the first evidence of the silencing and reactivation of a gene in normal diploid mammalian cells.

Azacitidine↗
PubMed1994

Evidence for adenine methylation within the mouse myogenic gene Myo-D1.

Previous studies have indicated that there may be uncleavable TaqI sites (TCGA) within the mouse myogenic gene, Myo-D1. Fragments of DNA bearing most of the presumed insensitive TaqI sites have been reproduced using PCR. The presence of each of the originally uncleavable TaqI sites has been confirmed and each TaqI site has been shown to be sensitive to TaqI hydrolysis in PCR-synthesized genomic DNA. Since TaqI is inhibited by methylation of the adenine residue within its recognition sequence (but not by cytosine methylation), it is suggested that specific adenine bases are methylated in the coding region of Myo-DI and maintained throughout cell division. The same TaqI recognition sequences are insensitive to digestion in genomic DNA isolated from various mouse tissues including fetus, regenerating skeletal muscle and a myogenic cell line, all of which express Myo-D1. Thus, adenine methylation is not a modification of DNA following gametic fusion nor does it appear to play a major role in regulation of Myo-D1 expression.

Adenine↗
PubMed1993

DNA methylation and mutation.

5-Methylcytosine (5mC) in DNA is produced by post-synthetic modification of cytosine residues, and it occurs primarily in CpG doublets in the mammalian genome. 5mC is a mutable site, because it can undergo spontaneous deamination to thymine. There is a repair mechanism which specifically recognises G.T mispairs, and replaces thymine with cytosine. However, this repair is not fully efficient, because the 5mC-->T transition mutation occurs about 10 times as frequently as other transitions. Such mutations are frequently seen in inherited diseases, and mutations in the p53 gene in tumours are also very commonly in 5mCpG doublets. As well as mutations, there can also be heritable changes in DNA methylation, known as epimutations, which may be of particular significance in somatic cells. Whereas the pattern of DNA methylation is very constant for any one cell type, the pattern becomes very variable in tumour cells. The breakdown of the normal controls of DNA methylation in tumorigenesis can lead to increased gene expression or to gene silencing. DNA damage increases not only mutation, but also heritable changes in methylation. At present, little is known about the ability of DNA repair to preserve the normal pattern of methylation in somatic cells.

5-Methylcytosine↗
PubMed1992

Of mice and men.

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Animals↗
PubMed1991

Quantitative genetic variation and developmental clocks.

It is well-known that most genetic variation affects quantitative traits, and natural or artificial selection can act to change quantitative features of organisms more rapidly than qualitative ones. Surprisingly, variability is not confined to outbred species, but also occurs in inbred mice at a much higher rate than expected from known mutation rates. The size and shape of organisms and their constituent parts are, at least in part, controlled by the number of cell divisions, and there is published evidence for the existence of developmental clocks, which may count cell divisions. A molecular model for a developmental clock was previously proposed. It depends on the DNA methylation of repeated sequences of DNA, where the methylation of each additional sequence is tied to DNA synthesis and therefore cell division. The number of repeats specifies the number of divisions which will occur before a signal is produced which can activate or inactivate one or more genes. It is known that crossing over occurs between sister chromatids, and where tandemly repeated sequences occur unequal exchange can generate a larger or smaller number of repeats. An example of this is seen in the well-known variability of "minisatellite" sequences in human DNA. Unequal sister chromatid exchange can occur in mitotic and meiotic cells in the germ line, and in the case of developmental clock sequences could generate variation in clock length which in turn would directly affect quantitative traits. These events can be regarded as a special case of molecular drive during evolution.

Animals↗
PubMed1991

Gene silencing in mammalian cells by uptake of 5-methyl deoxycytidine-5'-triphosphate.

Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells were subjected to electroporation in the presence of 5-methyl deoxycytidine-triphosphate. This treatment increases by 10 to 100-fold the frequency of cells lacking thymidine kinase, hypoxanthine-guanine phosphoribosyltransferase, or adenine phosphoribosyltransferase. The inactivation of the genes coding for these enzymes is thought to occur following the direct incorporation of the methylated nucleotide triphosphate into DNA. The enzyme-deficient clones were stable, but almost all were reactivated at high frequency by the demethylating agent 5-azacytidine, to produce derivatives with enzyme activity. The results indicate that there is a direct relationship between DNA methylation and gene silencing.

Adenine Phosphoribosyltransferase↗
PubMed1990

Ambidextrous RNA.

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Isomerism↗
PubMed1990

DNA methylation and epigenetic inheritance.

Classical genetics has revealed the mechanisms for the transmission of genes from generation to generation, but the strategy of the genes in unfolding the developmental programme remains obscure. Epigenetics comprises the study of the mechanisms that impart temporal and spatial control on the activities of all those genes required for the development of a complex organism from the zygote to the adult. Epigenetic changes in gene activity can be studied in relation to DNA methylation in cultured mammalian cells and it is also possible to isolate and characterize mutants with altered DNA methylase activity. Although this experimental system is quite far removed from the epigenetic controls acting during development it does provide the means to clarify the rules governing the silencing of genes by specific DNA methylation and their reactivation by demethylation. This in turn will facilitate studies on the control of gene expression in somatic cells of the developing organism or the adult. The general principles of epigenetic mechanisms can be defined. There are extreme contrasts between instability or switches in gene expression, such as those in stem-line cells, and the stable heritability of a specialized pattern of gene activities. In some situations cell lineages are known to be important, whereas in others coordinated changes in groups of cells have been demonstrated. Control of numbers of cell divisions and the size of organisms, or parts of organisms, is also essential. The epigenetic determination of gene expression can be reversed or reprogrammed in the germ line. The extent to which methylation or demethylation of specific DNA sequences can help explain these basic epigenetic mechanisms is briefly reviewed.

Aging↗
PubMed1990

The limited proliferation of cultured human diploid cells: regulation or senescence?

It has been widely accepted that the limited life span of human diploid fibroblasts in culture provides a valid experimental model for the study of aging at the cellular level. In spite of innumerable investigations the underlying cause of cessation of growth is not known. Many approaches are being used to test the specific hypothesis that cells at the end of their life span produce an inhibitor of the initiation of DNA synthesis which irreversibly arrests cells in G1, rather than resulting in cell death. This implies that there is positive control of cell proliferation and that the final population of noncycling cells is in a stable state. There appears to be a basic contradiction between this interpretation of published data and the long-standing view that cells actually become progressively senescent during phase III of their growth in vitro. The DNA inhibitor theory can be criticized on a number of grounds, and there is considerable evidence that fibroblasts at the end of their life span are heterogeneous and have a very complex pleiotropic phenotype. One effect of these changes would be to prevent DNA synthesis and normal progression through the cell cycle. The conclusion is that phase III cells are indeed senescent, presumably as a result of a general failure to maintain the integrity of macromolecules and other cellular components.

Aging↗