Abstract
Spontaneous deamination converts cytosine to uracil, which is excised from DNA by the enzyme uracil-DNA glycosylase, leading to error-free repair. 5-Methylcytosine residues are deaminated to thymine, which cannot be excised and repaired by this system. As a result, 5-methylcytosine residues are hotspots for spontaneous transitions, as demonstrated in the lacI gene of Escherichia coli. We show here that in bacteria which lack uracil-DNA glycosylase (Ung−) and cannot excise uracil residues from DNA, the rate of spontaneous transition at cytosine residues is raised to the hotspot rate at 5-methylcytosine residues. These studies provide direct evidence that the deamination of cytosine is a significant source of spontaneous mutations.
This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution
Relevant articles
Open Access articles citing this article.
-
Gene editing with ‘pencil’ rather than ‘scissors’ in human pluripotent stem cells
Stem Cell Research & Therapy Open Access 20 June 2023
-
Increased mutation and gene conversion within human segmental duplications
Nature Open Access 10 May 2023
-
Comparative analysis of genome-scale, base-resolution DNA methylation profiles across 580 animal species
Nature Communications Open Access 16 January 2023
Access options
Subscribe to this journal
Receive 51 print issues and online access
$199.00 per year
only $3.90 per issue
Rent or buy this article
Prices vary by article type
from$1.95
to$39.95
Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout
References
Lindahl, T. & Nyberg, B. Biochemistry 13, 3405–3410 (1974).
Lindahl, T. Proc. natn. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 71, 3649–3653 (1974).
Tye, B. K., Chien, J., Lehman, I. R., Duncan, B. K. & Warner, H. R. Proc. natn. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 75, 233–237 (1978).
Duncan, B. K., Rockstroh, P. A. & Warner, H. R. J. Bact. 134, 1039–1045 (1978).
Duncan, B. K. & Weiss, B. in DNA Repair Mechanisms (eds Hanawalt, P. C., Friedberg, E. C. & Fox, C. F.) 183–186 (Academic, New York, 1978).
Coulondre, C., Miller, J. H., Farabaugh, P. J. & Gilbert, W. Nature 274, 775–780 (1978).
Miller, J. H., Ganem, D., Lu, P. & Schimitz, A. J. molec. Biol. 109, 275–302 (1977).
Coulondre, C. & Miller, J. H. J. molec. Biol. 117, 577–606 (1977).
Lindahl, T. Prog. Nucleic Acids Res. molec. Biol. 22, 135–192 (1979).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Duncan, B., Miller, J. Mutagenic deamination of cytosine residues in DNA. Nature 287, 560–561 (1980). https://doi.org/10.1038/287560a0
Received:
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/287560a0
This article is cited by
-
Gene editing with ‘pencil’ rather than ‘scissors’ in human pluripotent stem cells
Stem Cell Research & Therapy (2023)
-
Multiple myeloma, a quintessential malignant disease of aging: a geroscience perspective on pathogenesis and treatment
GeroScience (2023)
-
Non-CpG sites preference in G:C > A:T transition of TP53 in gastric cancer of Eastern Europe (Poland, Romania and Hungary) compared to East Asian countries (China and Japan)
Genes and Environment (2023)
-
Comparative analysis of genome-scale, base-resolution DNA methylation profiles across 580 animal species
Nature Communications (2023)
-
Increased mutation and gene conversion within human segmental duplications
Nature (2023)
Comments
By submitting a comment you agree to abide by our Terms and Community Guidelines. If you find something abusive or that does not comply with our terms or guidelines please flag it as inappropriate.
