Bleomycin-induced alterations in DNA replication: relationship to DNA damage

Bleomycin (BLM), a well-known DNA scission agent, is assumed to inhibit intracellular DNA replication by damaging the DNA template (cis-acting mechanism), although other DNA damaging compounds can alter DNA replication through modulation of crucial replication factor(s) (trans-acting mechanism). The present study examines the relationship between DNA damage and inhibition of replication caused by BLM in the well-defined simian virus 40 (SV40) intracellular and cell-free in vitro systems. Treatment of SV40-infected BSC-1 cells for 2 h with BLM at 50 microg/mL, induced 0.3 break/viral genome. Under the same treatment conditions, analysis of replication intermediates on two-dimensional gels showed a decrease in both mass of SV40 replication intermediates and replication activity. The mass of SV40 intermediates was decreased to about 30%, whereas replication activity was reduced to less than 5%. These results suggest that BLM inhibits both initiation and elongation phases of SV40 replication. In a cell-free DNA replication system, extracts from BLM-treated cells (50 micro/mL) were able to support SV40 DNA replication by only 50%. In this study, non-drug-treated DNA template was used, implying that BLM can induce a trans-acting effect. Finally, the drug-induced effects on SV40 DNA replication in cell-free and intracellular viral systems were compared to the effects on genomic DNA replication in BSC-1 cells. Overall, the results support the concept that BLM-induced inhibition of DNA replication occurs by both trans- (inhibition of replication of nondamaged template) and cis-acting mechanisms (template damage).