Re: UV Tanning[a small addition]

["DAVE GILMORE" <DGILMORE@navajo.astate.edu>]

Emil wrote:

> There is a probability of two UV photons simultaneous strike to two
> strands of the same DNA, in certain geometic conditions, to produce 
> DSB.  I would speculate that it could cause a mutation=>...=>melanoma
> 
> Emil M. Kerrembaev.
>                                                             * 

I've heard somewhere else that a UV photon can cause a single strand 
break, but I have never seen it in any text.  Typically, UV causes 
dimer formation in the DNA backbone leading toward error prone repair 
and thus mutation.  With all the DNA in a human, most of it not 
coding for anything, the chance of two photons hitting opposite 
strands in the same place on an important gene.....  not likely.

  




David F. Gilmore,
Assistant Professor of          0  0
Environmental Biology            __    "have a day"
Arkansas State University