FAMILIAL MELANOMA ASSOCIATED WITH DOMINANT ULTRAVIOLET-RADIATION SENSITIVITY

  • 1 January 1982
    • journal article
    • research article
    • Vol. 42  (7) , 2909-2912
Abstract
Sensitivity to UV radiation was studied in lymphoblastoid cell lines derived from 32 members of 2 families with histories of multiple primary melanomas in several generations. As assayed by colony formation in agar or by trypan blue exclusion following irradiation, cellular sensitivity showed a bimodal distribution. All persons with melanoma or multiple moles were in the sensitive group, while some family members exhibited responses similar to those of controls. Cells from 4 cases of sporadic melanoma showed normal levels of sensitivity. The data are consistent with a dominantly inherited UV light sensitivity associated with these examples of familial melanoma. Spontaneous and UV light-induced sister chromatid exchange frequencies were similar to those in control cell lines. No defect in excision repair was detected in any of the above cell lines, but the sensitive group showed postirradiation inhibition of DNA replication intermediate between controls and an excision-deficient [human] xeroderma pigmentosum cell line [XP301ABR].