Generation of Interstrand DNA Cross-Links under Conditions of Acid Stress

Bacteria encounter acid stress under a variety of circumstances. Acid stress induces DNA damage and genomic instability, most directly via acid-catalyzed depurination reactions that generate apurinic (abasic, AP) sites on the deoxyribose phosphate backbone. DNA damage responses are important in bacterial resistance to acids. A recent report provided evidence that a DNA repair glycosylase, AlkX, which is capable of initiating the repair of interstrand DNA cross-links (ICLs), contributes to acid resistance by the pulmonary pathogen Acinetobacter baumannii (Kunkle et al. Proc. Nat. Acad. Sci. USA, 2024, 121, e2402422121). This suggested the possibility that AP-derived ICLs might contribute to the acid stress in bacteria. This idea is predicated on earlier work showing that AP sites can generate ICLs via reactions of the ring-opened AP aldehyde with the exocyclic amino groups of nucleobases on the opposing strand of duplex DNA (Price, N. E. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2014, 136, 3483). However, it was not clear from previous work whether AP-derived ICLs could be generated under conditions of acid stress. The results reported here provide evidence for ICL formation under conditions of acid stress via a sequential process involving acid-catalyzed depurination followed by cross-linking of the resulting AP site with an adenine residue on the opposing strand of duplex DNA. This supports the possibility that AP-derived interstrand cross-links could contribute to the effects of acid stress in bacteria, and proteins involved in the repair of these lesions could be involved in resistance to acid stress.