Biomedical subjects

Yuzhi Zhang

Publications and source records attributed to Yuzhi Zhang.

3 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2002

A PCR-based amplification method retaining the quantitative difference between two complex genomes.

With the increasing emergence of genome-wide analysis technologies (including comparative genomic hybridization (CGH), expression profiling on microarrays, differential display (DD), subtractive hybridization, and representational difference analysis (RDA)), there is frequently a need to amplify entire genomes or cDNAs by PCR to obtain enough material for comparisons among target and control samples. A major problem with PCR is that amplification occurs in a nonlinear manner and reproducibility is influenced by stray impurities. As a result, when two complex DNA populations are amplified separately, the quantitative relationship between two genes after amplification is generally not the same as their relation before amplification. Here we describe balanced PCR, a procedure that faithfully retains the difference among corresponding amplified genes by using a simple principle. Two distinct genomic DNA samples are tagged with oligonucleotides containing both a common and a unique DNA sequence. The genomic DNA samples are pooled and amplified in a single PCR tube using the common DNA tag. By mixing the two genomes, PCR loses the ability to discriminate among the different alleles and the influence of impurities is eliminated. The PCR-amplified pooled samples can be separated using the DNA tag unique to each individual genomic DNA sample. The principle of this method has been validated with synthetic DNA, genomic DNA, and cDNA applied on microarrays. By removing the bias of PCR, this method allows a balanced amplification of allelic fragments from two complex DNAs even after three sequential rounds of PCR. This balanced PCR approach should allow genetic analysis in minute laser-microdissected tissues, paraffin-embedded archived material, or single cells.

DNA, Complementary↗

PubMed2002

An amplification and ligation-based method to scan for unknown mutations in DNA.

A new approach is presented for the sensitive and selective scanning for unknown DNA mutations, based on ligation-mediated PCR and the use of the glycosylases TDG and MutY. These two highly selective enzymes together can detect about 70% of commonly observed polymorphisms and mutations in human tumors. DNA is cross-hybridized to form mismatches at the positions of point mutations, de-phosphorylated to eliminate any pre-existing phosphorylated DNA ends, and then exposed to enzymatic treatment to remove mismatched thymidine (TDG) or adenine (MutY). The resulting apurinic/apyrimidinic sites at the position of the mismatches are heat-converted to 5'-phosphate-containing strand breaks, the DNA is denatured, and an oligonucleotide is ligated at the position of the newly created 5'-phosphate-containing DNA ends. The ligated oligonucleotide then participates in a PCR reaction that amplifies exponentially only the mutation-containing fragments. Using this method, A-->G mutations in a p53 (TP53)-containing system, T-->G, G-->A, and C-->A, mutations in the Ku gene (XRCC5), and ATM, gene for a number of patient-derived genomic DNA samples have been successfully screened. This PCR-based assay is capable of detecting one mutated allele in 100 normal alleles and requires 5 to 100 ng of genomic DNA as starting material. The assay allows final visualization of the mutated fragments on a common ethidium gel or biotinylation and use in a capture format, potentially allowing the isolation of diverse mutated DNA fragments simultaneously. This versatile new approach should allow high throughput detection of DNA alterations and application in diverse areas of human mutation research.

Adenine↗

PubMed2002

Ligation of a primer at a mutation: a method to detect low level mutations in DNA.

Detection of low frequency mutations following exposure to mutagens or during the early stages of cancer development is instrumental for risk assessment and molecular diagnosis. We present a sensitive new method to detect trace levels of DNA mutations induced within a large excess of wild-type sequences. The method is based on mutation-induced generation of new restriction enzyme recognition sites. A DNA sequence is amplified from genomic DNA or cDNA using a high fidelity polymerase. The purified PCR product is digested with a restriction enzyme that recognizes the newly generated restriction site, partially dephosphorylated and ligated with an oligonucleotide at the position of the mutation. The ligated oligonucleotide is then utilized in two rounds of PCR to amplify the mutated DNA but not the wild-type allele that contains no restriction site. An A-->T polymorphism in mRNA (tenascin gene, A(2366)-->T, Asn-->Ile) and a G-->A polymorphism in genomic DNA (Ku gene, G(74582)-->A, Val-->Ile), both of which generate a restriction site for the enzyme SAU3A1, demonstrate the application. Eleven patient samples pre-characterized for the G(74582)-->A polymorphism in the repair gene Ku are used to demonstrate the reliability of this approach. This technique quantitatively detects the Ku G-->A polymorphism at a mutant frequency of 1.6x10(-6) relative to the wild-type allele. Mutations in p53 that are frequently induced by mutagens can readily be detected using the present method. As an example, using a second enzyme BbvI, a mutation frequently encountered in human cancers (G(14154)-->A mutation, p53 codon 245, Arg-->Gln) was detected in patient samples. The process does not require radioactivity, utilizes established procedures and overcomes several factors known to produce false positives in RFLP-based assays. The present amplification via primer ligation at the mutation (APRIL-ATM) has potential applications in the detection of mutagen-generated genetic alterations, early detection of tumor marker mutations in bodily discharges and the diagnosis of minimal residual disease.

Adenocarcinoma↗