Abstract
The comet assay is a versatile assay for detecting DNA damage in eukaryotic cells. The assay can measure the levels of various types of damage, including DNA strand breaks, abasic sites and alkali-sensitive sites. Furthermore, the assay can also be modified to include purified DNA glycosylases so that alkylated and oxidized bases can be detected. The CometChip is a higher throughput version of the traditional comet assay and has been used to study cultured cells. Here, we have tested its utility for studies of DNA damage present in vivo. We show that the CometChip is effective in detecting DNA damage in multiple tissues of mice exposed to the direct-acting methylating agent methylmethane sulfonate (MMS) and to the metabolically activated methylating agent N-nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA), which has been found to contaminate food, water, and drugs. Specifically, results from MMS-exposed mice demonstrate that DNA damage can be detected in cells from liver, lung, kidney, pancreas, brain and spleen. Results with NDMA show that DNA damage is detectable in metabolically competent tissues (liver, lung, and kidney), and that DNA repair in vivo can be monitored over time. Additionally, it was found that DNA damage persists for many days after exposure. Furthermore, glycosylases were successfully incorporated into the assay to reveal the presence of damaged bases. Overall, this work demonstrates the efficacy of the in vivo CometChip and reveals new insights into the formation and repair of DNA damage caused by MMS and NDMA.