Uracil DNA N-glycosylase is a repair enzyme that releases uracil from DNA. A major function of this enzyme is presumably to protect the genome from pre-mutagenic uracil resulting from deamination of cytosine in DNA. Here, we report that human uracil DNA N-glycosylase also recognizes three uracil derivatives that are generated as major products of cytosine in DNA by hydroxyl radical attack or ot...

Prebiotic building blocks for the formation of biomolecules are important in understanding the abiotic origin of biomolecules. However, there is a limited choice of the building blocks as precursors for the biomolecules. Acetylene (HCCH) is found in Titan's atmosphere and is an abiotic-precursor of pyrimidine bases. HCCH reacts with urea to form both cytosine and uracil. The mechanisms for the ...

This theoretical study investigates possible synthetic routes to cytosine, uracil and thymine in the gas phase from precursor molecules that have been detected in interstellar media. Studies at the CCSD(T)/6-311++G(d,p)//B3LYP/6-311++G(d,p) level of theory suggest that: The reactions between :CCCNH and :CCCO with monosolvated urea may constitute viable interstellar syntheses of cytosine and ura...

DNA cytosine methylation is a conserved epigenetic modification frequently correlating with transcriptional silencing in a wide variety of eukaryotic organisms. Sodium bisulfite treatment of DNA converts unmethylated cytosine to uracil, while 5-methylated cytosine is protected. We describe techniques that ensure reliable sequencing data following sodium bisulfite conversion and to avoid common ...

The metabolism of exogenous pyrimidine bases and nucleosides was investigated in Brevibacterium ammoniagenes and Micrococcus luteus with fluorinated analogs and radioactive precursors. Salvage of thymine and thymidine was found in M. luteus, but not in B. ammoniagenes. Exogenous uracil or uracil nucleosides, but not cytosine or cytosine nucleosides, were nucleic acid precursors for both bacteri...

Recent studies using anion exclusion chromatography have suggested that uracil is misincorporated into the DNA of patients with megaloblastic anemia to levels detectable by nonradioactive methods. We have investigated the nucleotide composition of DNA from the bone marrow mononuclear cells of eight patients with cobalamin deficiency and compared this with that found in normal subjects. The medi...

The ionization potentials and electron affinities of thymine, cytosine, adenine, guanine, and uracil were determined at density functional level using different exchange-correlation functionals and basis sets. Results showed that the computed ionization potentials are very close to the experimental counterparts. The sign of adiabatic electron affinities of adenine, thymine, and uracil is unaffe...