Histone H1 kinase activity in one-cell mouse embryos blocked in the G2 phase by X-irradiation

The activation of the p34(cdc2)/cyclin B complex is responsible for driving the cell cycle from the G2- to the M-phase. To investigate the effects of irradiation on the activity of the p34(cdc2)/cyclin B complex in preimplantation embryos, we irradiated one-cell mouse embryos with 2.5 Gy of X-rays at the early pronuclear stage, and measured the fluctuations of histone H1 kinase activity (a biochemical indicator of the kinase activity of the p34(cdc2)) at different times during the radiation-induced G2-arrest. BALB/c embryos were chosen for these experiments, since earlier results obtained in our laboratory had shown that such a treatment induces a G2-arrrest of about 20 hours in more than 90% of the embryos. Our data showed that histone H1 kinase activity of irradiated embryos remained at a very low level during the period of G2-arrest. The level of activity found during late division of the G2-arrested embryos was also significantly lower in comparison with that of control embryos or irradiated embryos dividing without delay. All together, our results suggest that a) low levels of histone H1 kinase activity are sufficient for the division of one-cell embryos, b) there could be a link between the levels of histone H1 kinase activity in mitosis and the health status of the embryo.