Sequence effect on alkali-sensitive sites in UV-irradiated SV40 DNA

Ultraviolet light at 254 nm induces various kinds of DNA damage. We have located and quantified the pyrimidine (6-4) pyrimidone photoproducts along three hundred and forty two nucleotides of SV40 DNA. The level of photoproduct induction varies greatly according to the position on the DNA, but unlike what happens with pyrimidine dimers, the very adjacent nucleotides do not play a major role in the frequency of formation. A new alkali-sensitive site has been found on the ACA sequence after UV irradiation. This complex lesion is insensitive to the T4 endonuclease V and the E. coli photolyase, and may be involved with mutagenesis.