Open AccessPremature Aging in Mice Deficient in DNA Repair and Transcription
Author(s) -
Jan de Boer,
JaanOlle Andressoo,
Jan de Wit,
J. G. M. Huijmans,
Rudolph B. Beems,
Harry van Steeg,
Geert Weeda,
Gijsbertus T. J. van der Horst,
Wibeke van Leeuwen,
Axel P. N. Themmen,
M. Meradji,
Jan H.J. Hoeijmakers
Publication year - 2002
Publication title -
science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 12.556
H-Index - 1186
eISSN - 1095-9203
pISSN - 0036-8075
DOI - 10.1126/science.1070174
Subject(s) - premature aging , dna repair , dna damage , werner syndrome , biology , cockayne syndrome , nucleotide excision repair , genome instability , helicase , genetics , microbiology and biotechnology , gene , transcription (linguistics) , dna , cancer research , rna , linguistics , philosophy
One of the factors postulated to drive the aging process is the accumulation of DNA damage. Here, we provide strong support for this hypothesis by describing studies of mice with a mutation in XPD, a gene encoding a DNA helicase that functions in both repair and transcription and that is mutated in the human disorder trichothiodystrophy (TTD). TTD mice were found to exhibit many symptoms of premature aging, including osteoporosis and kyphosis, osteosclerosis, early greying, cachexia, infertility, and reduced life-span. TTD mice carrying an additional mutation in XPA, which enhances the DNA repair defect, showed a greatly accelerated aging phenotype, which correlated with an increased cellular sensitivity to oxidative DNA damage. We hypothesize that aging in TTD mice is caused by unrepaired DNA damage that compromises transcription, leading to functional inactivation of critical genes and enhanced apoptosis.
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