An analysis of the effect of lead chloride on the fidelity of DNA synthesis
Abstract
Exposure to lead has been identified to be mutagenic and to induce chromosome abnormalities in man. This research focused on an analysis of the mutagenic effects of lead chloride on the fidelity of in vitro DNA synthesis by exonuclease-deficient E. coli DNA polymerase I. Errors in DNA synthesis caused by the presence of lead chloride have been quantified utilizing the M13mp2 lac Z $\alpha$-complementation assay that measures a variety of errors occurring during synthesis of a 250 base pair target of the lac Z gene. A dose-dependent relationship was shown to exist between the mutation frequency and the lead chloride concentrations. A maximum increase in the mutation frequency of approximately 2.5-fold (compared with the control) was observed at a lead chloride concentration of 0.125 mM. The results of the investigation will form the basis for providing details of the specificity of lead-induced mutagenesis and insight into the mechanism of metal-induced mutagenesis.
Subject Area
Molecular biology|Biochemistry
Recommended Citation
Pittman, Scheherazade, "An analysis of the effect of lead chloride on the fidelity of DNA synthesis" (1997). ETD Collection for Fayetteville State University. AAI1390618.
https://digitalcommons.uncfsu.edu/dissertations/AAI1390618