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. 1974 May;71(5):1862–1865. doi: 10.1073/pnas.71.5.1862

On the Possibility That DNA Repair Is Related to Age in Non-Dividing Cells

K T Wheeler 1,2,*, J T Lett 1,2
PMCID: PMC388342  PMID: 4525298

Abstract

Possible age-related deterioration in the efficacy of DNA repair was investigated in a complement of non-dividing mammalian cells which is not replenished during the lifetime of the animal. Internal granular-layer neurons were extracted from the cerebella of beagle dogs, aged from 7 weeks to 13 years, following exposure in situ to 4700 rads of collimated 60Co gamma rays. The alkaline sucrose-gradient sedimentation profiles obtained from the DNA of those neurons after various post-irradiation periods in situ can be interpreted: (a) that there is not an age-associated decrease in the ability of the cells to rejoin the single-strand breaks induced by radiation, but (b) that there may be an age-associated decline in the size of the DNA-containing species which can be extracted from unirradiated cells. The latter effect may reflect normal aging of the cerebellum.

Keywords: single-strand breaks, neurons, radiation

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Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

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