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J. Exp. Med.,
Volume 188, Number 4, August 17, 1998 627-634
By

From the * Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale U429, Développement Normal
et Pathologique du Système Immunitaire, Hôpital Necker-Enfants Malades, 75015 Paris, France; and The products of recombination activating gene (RAG)1 and RAG2 initiate the lymphoid-specific phase of the V(D)J recombination by creating a DNA double-strand break (dsb), leaving
hairpin-sealed coding ends. The next step uses the general DNA repair machinery of the cells
to resolve this dsb. Several genes involved in both V(D)J recombination and DNA repair have
been identified through the analysis of in vitro mutants (Chinese hamster ovary cells) and in
vivo situations of murine and equine severe combined immunodeficiency (scid). These studies
lead to the description of the Ku-DNA-dependent protein kinase complex and the XRCC4
factor. A human SCID condition is characterized by an absence of B and T lymphocytes. One
subset of these patients also demonstrates an increased sensitivity to the ionizing radiation of
their fibroblasts and bone marrow precursor cells. This phenotype is accompanied by a profound defect in V(D)J recombination with a lack of coding joint formation, whereas signal joints are normal. Functional and genetic analyses distinguish these patients from the other recombination/repair mutants, and thus define a new group of mutants whose affected gene(s) is
involved in sensitivity to ionizing radiation and V(D)J recombination.
Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique Unité Mixte de Recherche 218 Institut Curie-Section
Recherche, 75005 Paris, France
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