Evaluation of bleached kraft mill process water using Microtox(R), Ceriodaphnia dubia, and Menidia beryllina toxicity tests

We show herein that human DNA topoisomerase II beta is functional in yeast. It can complement a yeast temperature-sensitive mutation in topoisomerase II. The effect on human topoisomerase II beta of a number of topoisomerase II inhibitors was analysed in a yeast in vivo system and compared with that of human topoisomerase II alpha and wild-type yeast topoisomerase II. A drug permeable yeast strain (JN394 top2-4) was used to analyse the in vivo effects of known anti-topoisomerase II agents on human topoisomerase II beta transformants. A parallel analysis on human topoisomerase II alpha transformants provides the first in vivo analysis of the responses of yeast bearing the individual isoforms to these drugs. The strain was analysed at 35 degrees C, a non-permissive temperature at which only plasmid-borne topoisomerase II is active. A shuttle vector with either human topoisomerase II beta, human topoisomerase II alpha or yeast topoisomerase II under the control of a GAL1 promoter was used. The key findings were that amsacrine produced comparable levels of cell killing with both alpha and beta, whilst etoposide, doxorubicin and mitoxantrone produced higher degrees of cell killing with alpha than with beta or yeast topoisomerase II. Merbarone had the greatest effect on the yeast strain bearing plasmid-borne yeast topoisomerase II. Suramin, quercetin and genistein showed little cell killing in this system. This yeast in vivo system provides a powerful way to analyse the effects of anti-topoisomerase II agents on transformants bearing the individual human isoforms. This system also provides a means of analysing putative drug-resistance mutations in human topoisomerase II beta or to select for drug-resistance mutations in human topoisomerase II beta.     

Decreased drug accumulation without increased drug efflux in a novel MRP-overexpressing multidrug-resistant cell line

KB/7D cells represent a multidrug-resistant subclone of human nasopharyngeal carcinoma KB cells generated by continuous exposure to the topoisomerase II inhibitor VP-16 (etoposide). KB/7D cells also show cross-resistance to doxorubicin and vincristine. Phenotypic traits of the cell line include a 2-fold decrease in topoisomerase II levels and a decrease in the uptake of VP-16 without an increase in the rate of drug efflux or expression of P-glycoprotein, suggesting a novel mechanism associated with the uptake of anticancer drugs. This study demonstrated that the multidrug-resistance associated protein (MRP) is overexpressed in KB/7D cells, and that the loss of resistance in revertant cells correlates with the loss of MRP. The resistance to VP-16 and doxorubicin could be overcome, partially, and resistance to vincristine could be overcome completely, by the L-enantiomer of verapamil, but not by the D-enantiomer or by BIBW 22 (4-[N-(2-hydroxy-2-methyl-propyl)-ethanolamino]-2,7-bis[cis-2,6-++ +dimethylmorpholino)-6-phenylpteridin), an inhibitor of MDR-1. L-Verapamil was shown to be significantly more potent than D-verapamil in modulating the accumulation defect in KB/7D cells towards doxorubicin, as measured by flow cytometry and confocal microscopy, and towards VP-16, as measured by increases in protein-linked DNA strand breaks. This suggests that KB/7D cells are multidrug resistant due to decreases in topoisomerase II levels and the overexpression of MRP, that MRP leads to a decrease in drug accumulation, and that L-verapamil can modulate the MRP-associated accumulation defect and drug-resistance phenotype. This contrasts with previous studies that suggest that MRP causes multidrug resistance by exporting cytotoxic drugs out of the cell and that did not show modulation of MRP by verapamil.     

Use of a rapid throughput in vivo screen to investigate inhibitors of eukaryotic topoisomerase II enzymes

Topoisomerase II catalyzes the passage of one DNA helix through another via a transient double-stranded break. The essential nature of this enzyme in cell proliferation and its mechanism of action make it an ideal target for cytotoxic agents. Saccharomyces cerevisiae topoisomerase II has been frequently used as a model for testing potential inhibitors of eukaryotic topoisomerase II as antitumor agents. The standard in vivo method of estimating the sensitivity of S. cerevisiae to the antitopoisomerase drugs is via inhibition or kill curves which rely on viable-cell counts and is labor intensive. We present an alternative to this, a high-throughput in vivo screen. This method makes use of a drug-permeable S. cerevisiae strain lacking endogenous topoisomerase II, which is modified to express either human topoisomerase IIalpha or IIbeta or S. cerevisiae topoisomerase II carried on plasmids. Each modified strain expresses a full-length topoisomerase II enzyme, as opposed to the more commonly used temperature-sensitive S. cerevisiae mutant expressing yeast or yeast/human hybrid enzymes. A comparison of this new method with a plating-and-counting method gave similar drug sensitivity results, with increased accuracy and reduced manual input for the new method. The information generated has highlighted the sensitivities of different topoisomerase II enzymes and isoenzymes to several different classes of topoisomerase II inhibitor.     

Intraperitoneal chemotherapy and cytoreductive surgery for the prevention and treatment of peritoneal carcinomatosis and sarcomatosis

The treatment of cancer with alkylating drugs or topoisomerase II inhibitors can be responsible for the development of myelodysplastic syndromes and acute myelogenous leukemia. Alkylating agents such as melphalan and cisplatinum mainly produce damages at chromosomes 5 and 7 whereas topoisomerase II inhibitors-induced lesions essentially affect chromosomes 11 and 21. Rearrangements of the MLL gene at band 11q23 are frequently observed in human de novo myeloid and lymphoid leukemia as well as in leukemia or myelodysplasia secondary to therapy with drugs targetting topoisomerase II such as the epipodophyllotoxins. A relationship between the treatment with etoposide on teniposide and the development of translocations of the MLL gene has been clearly evidenced. The potential molecular basis of the chromosomal rearrangements implicating topoisomerase II and its inhibitors are discussed. The chemical structure of the inhibitors, their mechanism of action and the genes targetted by these drugs are presented. DNA cleavages induced directly by topoisomerase II inhibitors or by the drug induced apoptotic cellular response are responsible for nonrandom chromosomal aberrations and contribute to leukemogenesis.     

DNA topoisomerase II alpha expression is associated with alkylating agent resistance

Increased expression of DNA topoisomerase II alpha has been associated with resistance to certain DNA-damaging alkylating agents, but no causal relationship or mechanism has been established. To investigate this observation, we developed a model of topoisomerase II overexpression by transfecting a full-length Chinese hamster ovary topoisomerase II alpha into EMT6 mouse mammary carcinoma. Topoisomerase II alpha-transfected cell lines demonstrated continued topoisomerase II alpha mRNA and protein expression, which were undetectable in vector-only lines, in stationary phase (G0-G1). The topoisomerase II transfectants were approximately 5-10-fold resistant to the alkylating agents cisplatin and mechlorethamine. Upon release from G0-G1, the topoisomerase II transfectants demonstrated more rapid thymidine incorporation and shorter cell-doubling times than control cells. Purified topoisomerase II and nuclear extracts with topoisomerase II-decatenating activity bound to cisplatin-treated DNA with significantly greater affinity than to untreated DNA in a cisplatin concentration-dependent manner. These observations suggest that expression of topoisomerase II alpha may have a role in cellular resistance to antineoplastic alkylating agents. The mechanism for this may involve increased binding of topoisomerase II alpha to alkylating agent-damaged DNA.     

Effects of DNA methylation on topoisomerase I and II cleavage activities

DNA methylation is deregulated during oncogenesis. Since several major anti-cancer drugs act on topoisomerases, we investigated the effects of cytosine methylation on topoisomerase cleavage activities. Both topoisomerase I and II cleavage patterns were modified by CpG methylation in c-myc gene DNA fragments. Topoisomerase II changes, mainly cleavage reduction, occurred for methylation sites within 7 base pairs from the topoisomerase II breaks and were different for VM-26 and azatoxin. For topoisomerase I, cleavage enhancement as well as suppression were observed. Using synthetic methylated oligonucleotides, we show that hemimethylation is sufficient to alter topoisomerase I activity. Cytosine methylation on the scissile strand within the topoisomerase I consensus sequence had strong effects. Cleavage was stimulated by methylation at position -4 and was strongly inhibited by methylation at position -3 (with position -1 being the enzyme-linked nucleotide). This inhibitory effect was attributed to the presence of a methyl group in the major groove, since the transition uracil to thymine also inhibited cleavage. Altogether these results suggest an interaction of topoisomerase I with the DNA major grove at positions -3 and -4. In addition, DNA methylation may have profound effects on the activity of topoisomerases and may alter the distribution of cleavage sites produced by anticancer drugs in chromatin.     

Effects of nucleosomes and anti-tumor drugs on the catalytic activity of type II DNA topoisomerase from rat testis

To gain insight into the relative catalytic efficiencies of mammalian type I and type II DNA topoisomerases, in the cellular context, we have used naked DNA and DNA incorporated into nucleosomes as substrates. We observed that the relaxation activity of both the enzymes declined with DNA containing increasing densities of nucleosomes; however, kinetic analysis revealed that topoisomerase I seemed less affected than topoisomerase II. The addition of histone H1, in stoichiometric amounts, to naked DNA or minichromosomes lessened the activity of topoisomerase II, and required 7-fold less for complete inhibition when the latter was used as the substrate. To ascertain if the observed differences are specific to topoisomerase II from testis, we examined the effect of nucleosomes on the catalytic efficiency of its isoform from liver. Interestingly, the suppression of relaxation activity of liver topoisomerase II required substrates containing higher mass ratios of histone octamer/DNA. Studies on the effect of nucleosomes on the action of teniposide displayed significant differences in the kinetics of the reaction, in its IC50 values, and have provided biochemical evidence for the first time that nucleosomes increased inhibition caused by teniposide. Further, this feature appears to be specific for topoisomerase II-directed drugs and is not shared by the generic class of either DNA-intercalating or non-DNA-intercalating ligands.     

Characterization of DNA topoisomerase II alpha/beta heterodimers in HeLa cells

In mammalian cells, DNA topoisomerase II is the product of two distinct genes encoding the alpha and beta isoforms of the enzyme. Besides homodimeric topoisomerase IIalpha and IIbeta, we have recently shown that alpha/beta heterodimers constitute a third population of topoisomerase II in HeLa cells. We found that topoisomerase II heterodimers are not restricted to HeLa cells but exist in different mammalian cell types, and up to 25% of the total topoisomerase IIbeta population is involved in heterodimer formation. Studies of topoisomerase II phosphorylation in HeLa cells show that heterodimers are phosphorylated in vivo to a significantly lower level compared to homodimeric alpha enzymes, but in contrast to the latter neither heterodimers nor topoisomerase IIbeta homodimers coprecipitate together with a kinase activity that is able to mediate their phosphorylation. However, both enzymes can still be phosphorylated by exogenously added casein kinase II. The differential phosphorylation of topoisomerase II heterodimers suggests an alternative regulation of this topoisomerase II subclass compared to the homodimeric topoisomerase IIalpha counterparts.     

Induction of topoisomerase II-mediated DNA cleavage by a protoberberine alkaloid, berberrubine

Topoisomerase II is the cytotoxic target for a number of clinically relevant antitumor drugs. Berberrubine, a protoberberine alkaloid which exhibits antitumor activity in animal models, has been identified as a specific poison of topoisomerase II in vitro. Topoisomerase II-mediated DNA cleavage assays showed that berberrubine poisons the enzyme by stabilizing topoisomerase II-DNA cleavable complexes. Subsequent proteinase K treatments revealed that berberrubine-induced DNA cleavage was generated solely by topoisomerase II. Topoisomerase II-mediated DNA religation with elevated temperature revealed a substantial reduction in DNA cleavage induced by berberrubine, to the extent comparable to that of other prototypical topoisomerase II poison, etoposide, suggesting that DNA cleavage involves stabilization of the reversible enzyme-DNA cleavable complex. However, the step at which berberrubine induces cleavable complex may differ from that of etoposide as revealed by the difference in the formation of the intermediate product, nicked DNA. This suggests that berberrubine's primary mode of linear formation may involve trapping nicked molecules, formed at transition from linear to covalently closed circular DNA. Unwinding of the duplex DNA by berberrubine is consistent with an intercalative binding mode for this compound. In addition to the ability to induce the cleavable complex mediated with topoisomerase II, berberrubine at high concentrations was shown to specifically inhibit topoisomerase II catalytic activity. Berberrubine, however, did not inhibit topoisomerase I at concentrations up to 240 microM. Cleavage sites induced by topoisomerase II in the presence of berberrubine and etoposide were mapped in DNA. Berberrubine induces DNA cleavage in a site-specific and concentration-dependent manner. Comparison of the cleavage pattern of berberrubine with that of etoposide revealed that they share many common sites of cleavage. Taken together, these results indicate that berberrubine represents a new class of antitumor agent which exhibits the topoisomerase II poison activity as well as catalytic inhibition activity and may have a potential clinical value in cancer treatment.     

The responses of secondary endings of cat soleus muscle spindles to succinyl choline

In this report we examine biochemical and genetic alterations in DNA topoisomerase II (topoisomerase II) in K562 cells selected for resistance in the presence of etoposide (VP-16). Previously, we have demonstrated that the 30-fold VP-16-resistant K/VP.5 cell line exhibits decreased stability of drug-induced topoisomerase II/DNA covalent complexes, requires greater ATP concentrations to stimulate VP-16-induced topoisomerase II/DNA complex formation, and contains reduced mRNA and protein levels of the M(r) 170,000 isoform of topoisomerase II, compared with parental K562 cells. K/VP.5 cells grown in the absence of VP-16 for 2 years maintained resistance to VP-16, decreased levels of topoisomerase II, and attenuated ATP stimulation of VP-16-induced topoisomerase II/DNA binding, compared with K562 cells. Sequencing of cDNA coding for two consensus ATP binding sites and the active site tyrosine in the K/VP.5 topoisomerase II gene indicated that no mutations were present in these domains. In addition, single-strand conformational polymorphism analysis of restriction fragments encompassing the entire topoisomerase II cDNA revealed no evidence of mutations in the gene for this enzyme in K/VP.5 cells. Nuclear extracts from K562 (but not K/VP.5) cells contained a heat-labile factor that potentiated VP-16-induced topoisomerase II/DNA covalent complex formation in isolated nuclei from K/VP.5 cells. Immunoprecipitated topoisomerase II from K/VP.5 cells was 2.5-fold less phosphorylated, compared with enzyme from K562 cells. Collectively, our data suggest that acquired VP-16 resistance is mediated, at least in part, by altered levels or activity of a kinase that regulates topoisomerase II phosphorylation and hence drug-induced topoisomerase II/DNA covalent complex formation and stability.     

Merbarone inhibits the catalytic activity of human topoisomerase IIalpha by blocking DNA cleavage

Merbarone is a catalytic inhibitor of topoisomerase II that is in clinical trials as an anticancer agent. Despite the potential therapeutic value of this drug, the mechanism by which it blocks topoisomerase II activity has not been delineated. Therefore, to determine the mechanistic basis for the inhibitory action of merbarone, the effects of this drug on individual steps of the catalytic cycle of human topoisomerase IIalpha were assessed. Concentrations of merbarone that inhibited catalytic activity >/=80% had no effect on either enzyme.DNA binding or ATP hydrolysis. In contrast, the drug was a potent inhibitor of enzyme-mediated DNA scission (in the absence or presence of ATP), and the inhibitory profiles of merbarone for DNA cleavage and relaxation were similar. These data indicate that merbarone acts primarily by blocking topoisomerase II-mediated DNA cleavage. Merbarone inhibited DNA scission in a global (rather than site-specific) fashion but did not appear to intercalate into DNA or bind in the minor groove. Since the drug competed with etoposide (a cleavage-enhancing agent that binds directly to topoisomerase II), it is proposed that merbarone exerts its inhibitory effects through interactions with the enzyme and that the drug shares an interaction domain on topoisomerase II with cleavage-enhancing agents.     

Topoisomerase function during replication-independent chromatin assembly in yeast

DNA topoisomerases I and II are the two major nuclear enzymes capable of relieving torsional strain in DNA. Of these enzymes, topoisomerase I plays the dominant role in relieving torsional strain during chromatin assembly in cell extracts from oocytes, eggs, and early embryos. We tested if the topoisomerases are used differentially during chromatin assembly in Saccharomyces cerevisiae by a combined biochemical and pharmacological approach. As measured by plasmid supercoiling, nucleosome deposition is severely impaired in assembly extracts from a yeast mutant with no topoisomerase I and a temperature-sensitive form of topoisomerase II (strain top1-top2). Expression of wild-type topoisomerase II in strain top1-top2 fully restored assembly-driven supercoiling, and assembly was equally efficient in extracts from strains expressing either topoisomerase I or II alone. Supercoiling in top1-top2 extract was rescued by adding back either purified topoisomerase I or II. Using the topoisomerase II poison VP-16, we show that topoisomerase II activity during chromatin assembly is the same in the presence and absence of topoisomerase I. We conclude that both topoisomerases I and II can provide the DNA relaxation activity required for efficient chromatin assembly in mitotically cycling yeast cells.     

Differential actions of aclarubicin and doxorubicin: the role of topoisomerase I

Aclarubicin and doxorubicin are DNA binding anthracycline antibiotics of related chemical structure but differing cytotoxic action. Although doxorubicin mediates its cytotoxicity by poisoning the enzyme topoisomerase II, aclarubicin has been hypothesized to inhibit the catalytic action of topoisomerase II. We show here that aclarubicin, in contrast to doxorubicin, is highly effective in inhibiting the action of topoisomerase I. Aclarubicin not only inhibits this enzyme in a cell-free assay but also markedly inhibits DNA-protein cross-linking in H460 human lung adenocarcinoma cells as measured by the K(+)-SDS precipitation technique. It also displaces topoisomerase I from DNA as measured by Western blotting. Aclarubicin reverses the cytotoxicity of both amsacrine and camptothecin in clonogenic survival assays, consistent with the hypothesis that it is a dual topoisomerase I/II inhibitor. We suggest that the self-inhibition of topoisomerase I in short-term assays may mask the underlying activity of aclarubicin as a topoisomerase I poison. In short-term (1-H) drug exposure assays, aclarubicin kills both exponential and plateau phase cells by a non-cell cycle-selective mechanism apparently not involving G2 phase arrest. This may be a consequence of simultaneous inhibition of topoisomerases I and II.     

Formation of topoisomerase II alpha complexes with nascent DNA is related to VM-26-induced cytotoxicity

Several clinically active anticancer drugs are known to interfere with DNA topoisomerase II activity. However, the importance of the individual alpha (170 kDa) and beta (180 kDa) isozymes as targets of topoisomerase II-active drugs is not clear. To address this question, human CCRF-CEM leukemia cells were incubated with bromodeoxyuridine, and either the nascent DNA or bulk DNA not undergoing replication was purified by immunoprecipitation with an anti-bromodeoxyuridine antibody. The topoisomerase II isozymes that coprecipitated with either the nascent DNA or bulk DNA were analyzed by Western blotting. The alpha isozyme formed complexes with nascent DNA in cells pretreated with either VM-26 or mitoxantrone, while the beta isozyme was only bound to bulk DNA. At moderately cytotoxic concentrations, VM-26 enhanced the binding of topoisomerase II alpha to nascent DNA at least 5.2-fold compared to bulk DNA. However, in VM-26 resistant CEM/VM-1 cells incubated with equitoxic concentrations of VM-26, topoisomerase II alpha complex formation with nascent DNA was decreased at least 5.5-fold compared to bulk DNA. Drug-induced binding of topoisomerase II beta with bulk DNA in CEM/VM-1 cells did not correlate with cytotoxicity. Collectively, these results indicate that the formation of VM-26 stabilized complexes of topoisomerase II alpha with nascent DNA are critical to the development of cytotoxicity, and that resistance of CEM/VM-1 cells to VM-26 is related to impaired formation of these complexes. The results also provide indirect evidence that topoisomerase II alpha is involved in DNA, replication.     

Antibacterial activities and inhibitory effects of sitafloxacin (DU-6859a) and its optical isomers against type II topoisomerases

The in vitro inhibitory effects of sitafloxacin (DU-6859a) and its three stereoisomers on bacterial DNA gyrase from Escherichia coli, topoisomerase IV from Staphylococcus aureus, and topoisomerase II from human placenta were compared. No correlation was observed between the inhibitory activities of quinolones against bacterial type II topoisomerases and those against human topoisomerase II. Sitafloxacin showed the most potent inhibitory activities against bacterial type II topoisomerases and the lowest activity against human type II topoisomerase.     

Conditional expression of wild-type topoisomerase II complements a mutant enzyme in mammalian cells

Alterations in the amino acid composition, phosphorylation pattern, or intracellular levels of topoisomerase II have been associated with resistance to antineoplastic agents whose effects are mediated through interactions with this enzyme. To develop a model system with which to investigate the determinants of topoisomerase II sensitivity or resistance to antineoplastic agents that target this enzyme, a cDNA encoding the wild-type Drosophila melanogaster topoisomerase II was ligated into a mammalian expression vector containing a glucocorticoid-inducible mouse mammary tumor virus promoter and transfected into an epipodophyllotoxin-resistant Chinese hamster ovary cell line (VPM(r)-5). In two transfectants carrying an intact, full-length Drosophila topoisomerase II cDNA, exposure to the inducing agent, dexamethasone (10 microM), resulted in complementation of the endogenous mutant topoisomerase II and phenotypic reversion to etoposide sensitivity. In the presence of glucocorticoid, etoposide-induced cytotoxicity increased 20-fold, despite the fact that Drosophila topoisomerase II mRNA expression was only 0.1% of that of the endogenous mammalian topoisomerase II. Induced cells demonstrated a marked increase in DNA single strand breaks compared with uninduced resistant cells, thereby providing biochemical evidence supporting increased DNA strand cleavage due to activation of the Drosophila enzyme. These observations demonstrate the ability of a wild-type Drosophila topoisomerase II to complement a mutant mammalian enzyme and suggest that transfectants capable of conditional topoisomerase II expression represent a useful model for studies of the biochemical pharmacology and structure-function relationships of normal and mutant enzymes.     

Coralyne and related compounds as mammalian topoisomerase I and topoisomerase II poisons

DNA topoisomerases are nuclear enzymes responsible for modifying the topological state of DNA. The development of agents capable of poisoning topoisomerases has proved to be an attractive approach in the search for novel cancer chemotherapeutics. Coralyne, an antileukemic alkaloid, has appreciable structural similarity to the potent topoisomerase I and II poison, nitidine. Analogues of coralyne were synthesized and evaluated for their activity as topoisomerase I and topoisomerase II poisons. These analogues were also evaluated for cytotoxicity in the human lymphoblast cell line, RPMI 8402, and its camptothecin-resistant variant, CPT-K5. The pharmacological activity of these analogues exhibited a strong dependence on the substitution pattern and the nature of substituents. Several 1-benzylisoquinolines and 3-phenylisoquinolines were also synthesized. These compounds, which incorporate only a portion of the ring structure of coralyne, were evaluated as topoisomerase poisons and for cytotoxicity. These structure-activity studies indicate that the structural rigidity associated with the coralyne ring system may be critical for pharmacological activity. The presence of a 3,4-methylenedioxy substituent on these coralyne analogues was generally associated with enhanced activity as a topoisomerase poison. 5,6-Dihydro-3,4-methylenedioxy-10,11-dimethoxydibenzo[a,g]quinoliz inium chloride was the most potent topoisomerase I poison among the coralyne analogues evaluated, having similar activity to camptothecin. This analogue also possessed exceptional potency as a topoisomerase II poison. Despite the pronounced activity of several of these coralyne derivatives as topoisomerase I poisons, none of these compounds had cytotoxic activity similar to camptothecin. Possible differences in cellular absorption between these coralyne analogs, which possess a quaternary ammonium group, and camptothecin may be responsible for the differences observed in their relative cytotoxicity.     

Design of new topoisomerase II inhibitors based upon a quinobenzoxazine self-assembly model

A new class of pyridobenzophenoxazine compounds has been developed as topoisomerase II inhibitors for anticancer chemotherapy. These compounds were designed based on a proposed model of a quinobenzoxazine self-assembly complex on DNA. They showed excellent inhibitory effects on several tumor cell lines with nanomolar IC50 values. Their cytotoxic potency correlates with their ability to unwind DNA and inhibit topoisomerase II.     

A carbamate analogue of amsacrine with activity against non-cycling cells stimulates topoisomerase II cleavage at DNA sites distinct from those of amsacrine

AMCA (methyl N-[4-(9-acridinylamino)-2-methoxyphenyl]carbamate hydrochloride), an amsacrine analogue containing a methylcarbamate rather than a methylsulphonamide side chain, contrasts with amsacrine, doxorubicin and etoposide in its relatively high cytotoxicity against non-cycling tumour cells. AMCA bound DNA more tightly than amsacrine, but the DNA base selectivity of binding, as measured by ethidium displacement from poly[dA-dT].[dA-dT] and poly[dG-dC].[dG-dC], was unchanged. AMCA-induced topoisomerase cleavage sites on pBR322, C-MYC and SV40 DNA were investigated using agarose or sequencing gels. DNA fragments were end-labelled, incubated with purified topoisomerase II from different mammalian sources and analysed after treatment with sodium dodecylsulphate/proteinase K. AMCA stimulated the cleavage activity of topoisomerase II, but the DNA sequence selectivity of cleavage was different from that of amsacrine and other topoisomerase inhibitors. It was similar to that of the methoxy derivative of AMCA, indicating that the changed specificity resulted from the carbamate group rather than from the methoxy group. The pattern of DNA cleavage induced by AMCA was similar for topoisomerase II alpha and II beta.     

Higher expression of topoisomerase II in lung cancers than normal lung tissues: different expression pattern from topoisomerase I

To examine the expression of topoisomerase I and topoisomerase II in primary lung cancer specimens at mRNA level, we carried out Northern blot analysis. As for topoisomerase I expression, there was no remarkable difference between lung cancer specimens and non-cancerous lung tissues. On the other hand, we could detect topoisomerase II mRNA in almost all lung cancer specimens, but not in non-cancerous tissues. By Southern blot analysis, we could not detect large deletion nor rearrangement in DNA level. These results suggest that the expression of topoisomerase II is highly increased in lung cancer at mRNA level and drugs against topoisomerase II might be more tumor-specific than those against topoisomerase I.