Considerations for the Use of the DNA Damage Marker γ-H2AX in Disease Modeling, Detection, Diagnosis, and Prognosis

Abstract

Background: DNA double-strand breaks are known to be the most lethal kind of DNA damage as they cause genomic instability. Visualization and quantification of these breaks are possible via staining of the phosphorylated histone H2A variant H2AX at serine 139 with the anti-phospho-histone H2AX (γ-H2AX) antibody. Methods: The literature was searched with the following keywords: DNA damage, double-strand break, PBMC, DNA repair, H2AX, γ-H2AX. Discussion: This review discusses various methods for the quantification of γ-H2AX and the use of γ-H2AX in cell culture, tissue biopsies, and peripheral blood mononuclear cells. The current research into basal DNA damage as quantified by γ-H2AX is discussed in relation to cancer. Conclusions: This review suggests that γ-H2AX has the potential for use in the prediction of cancer risk when applied to healthy tissue and peripheral blood mononuclear cells.