Preprint Article Version 1 Preserved in Portico This version is not peer-reviewed

The Tardigrade Damage Suppressor Protein Promotes Transcription Factor Activation and Expression of DNA Repair Genes in Human Cells in Response to Hydroxyl Radicals and UV-C Exposure

Claudia Ricci
* ORCID logo ,
Giulia Riolo
ORCID logo ,
Carlotta Marzocchi
ORCID logo ,
Jlenia Brunetti
ORCID logo ,
Alessandro Pini
,
Silvia Cantara
ORCID logo
Version 1 : Received: 13 July 2021 / Approved: 14 July 2021 / Online: 14 July 2021 (12:49:11 CEST)

How to cite: Ricci, C.; Riolo, G.; Marzocchi, C.; Brunetti, J.; Pini, A.; Cantara, S. The Tardigrade Damage Suppressor Protein Promotes Transcription Factor Activation and Expression of DNA Repair Genes in Human Cells in Response to Hydroxyl Radicals and UV-C Exposure. Preprints 2021, 2021070333. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202107.0333.v1 Ricci, C.; Riolo, G.; Marzocchi, C.; Brunetti, J.; Pini, A.; Cantara, S. The Tardigrade Damage Suppressor Protein Promotes Transcription Factor Activation and Expression of DNA Repair Genes in Human Cells in Response to Hydroxyl Radicals and UV-C Exposure. Preprints 2021, 2021070333. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202107.0333.v1

Abstract

The Ramazzottius varieornatus tardigrade is an extremotolerant terrestrial invertebrate belonging to the phylum of Tardigrada. At a length of 0.1-1.0 mm, tardigrades are small animals with an exceptional tolerance to extreme conditions such as high pressure, chemicals and irradia-tion. These properties have been attributed to the recently-discovered Dsup protein. Dsup is a nucleosome-binding protein that prevents DNA damage against X-ray and oxidative stress without impairing cell life, also in Dsup-transfected animal and plant cells. However, the precise “protective” role of this protein is still under study. We performed experiments on human cells and shows that, as compared to control cells, Dsup+ cells are more resistant to UV-C exposure and H2O2. Real-time PCR identified different expression patterns of endogenous genes involved in apoptosis, cell survival and DNA damage repair in Dsup+ cells in response to H2O2 and UV-C. While H2O2 treatment in Dsup+ cells only marginally involved the activation of pathways responsible for DNA repair reinforcing the idea of a direct protective effect of the protein on DNA, in UV-C exposed cells, Dsup efficiently upregulates DNA damage repair genes. In conclusion, our data may help to delineate the different mechanisms by which the Dsup protein operates in response to different insults.

Keywords

Dsup; tardigrade; UV-C; Oxidative stress; DNA repair; transcription factors

Subject

Biology and Life Sciences, Anatomy and Physiology

Copyright: This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

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