Effect of Low-Energy Electron Irradiation on DNA Damage by Cu2+ Ion

Background: The combined effect of the low energy electron (LEE) irradiation and $Cu^{2+}$ ion on DNA damage was investigated. Materials and Methods: Lyophilized pBR322 plasmid DNA films with various concentrations (1-15 mM) of $Cu^{2+}$ ion were independently irradiated by monochromatic LEEs with 5 eV. The types of DNA damage, single strand break (SSB) and double strand break (DSB), were separated and quantified by gel electrophoresis. Results and Discussion: Without electron irradiation, DNA damage was slightly increased with increasing Cu ion concentration via Fenton reaction. LEE-induced DNA damage, with no Cu ion, was only 6.6% via dissociative electron attachment (DEA) process. However, DNA damage was significantly increased through the combined effect of LEE-irradiation and Cu ion, except around 9 mM Cu ion. The possible pathways of DNA damage for each of these different cases were suggested. Conclusion: The combined effect of LEE-irradiation and Cu ion is likely to cause increasing dissociation after elevated transient negative ion state, resulting in the enhanced DNA damage. For the decrease of DNA damage at around 9-mM Cu ion, it is assumed to be related to the structural stabilization due to DNA inter- and intra-crosslinks via Cu ion.