Abstract.
Poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP) activity is widespread among eukaryotes. Upon DNA damage PARP binds to DNA strand breaks and transfers ADP-ribose residues from NAD+ to acceptor proteins and to ADP-ribosyl protein adducts. This leads to branched polymers of protein-coupled poly(ADP-ribose) (pADPr). Because the germline of Drosophila has recently become important in the study of DNA double-strand break repair (DSBR) as opposed to somatic DSBR we tested whether the catalytic activity of PARP can be stimulated by γ-irradiation during Drosophila spermatogenesis. Using antibodies against pADPr we detected a significant increase in PARP activity in male germline cells during spermatogenesis upon γ-irradiation. Different stages of spermatogenesis revealed different subnuclear localization patterns of pADPr. In premeiotic and postmeiotic cells pADPr localized in a pattern overlapping with lamin and topoisomerase II at the nuclear rim. In primary spermatocytes pADPr is associated with three loci corresponding to the chromosomes at the nuclear periphery.
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Received: 12 October 1998; in revised form: 21 December 1998 / Accepted: 23 December 1998
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Lankenau, S., Bürkle, A. & Lankenau, DH. Detection of poly(ADP-ribose) synthesis in Drosophila testes upon γ-irradiation. Chromosoma 108, 44–51 (1999). https://doi.org/10.1007/s004120050350
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s004120050350