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DNA repair

Making the cut

Nature volume 514, pages 39–40 (2014)Cite this article

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Analysis of the first step in repairing double-stranded-DNA breaks reveals that the Mre11 enzyme makes a DNA nick at a point separate from the break ends, creating an entry site for further processing by exonuclease enzymes. See Letter p.122

Double-stranded breaks in chromosomes are dangerous lesions that form when both strands of the DNA duplex are severed. Such breaks must be accurately repaired to preserve genome integrity — inaccurate or failed repair can result in chromosome rearrangements, loss of genetic information or even cell death. Indeed, faulty repair of double-stranded breaks is associated with infertility, developmental and immunological defects and predisposition to cancer. Cells repair breaks in an error-free manner through a mechanism called homologous recombination, which begins with removal of one of the two DNA strands at each broken end. On page 122 of this issue, Cannavo and Cejka1 provide mechanistic insight into exactly how a three-protein complex, Mre11–Rad50–Xrs2, is involved in the initial stages of error-free DNA repair.

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Figure 1: Resection in the right direction.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Lorraine S. Symington is in the Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Columbia University Medical Center, New York, New York 10032, USA.,

    Lorraine S. Symington

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  1. Lorraine S. Symington
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Correspondence to Lorraine S. Symington.

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Symington, L. Making the cut. Nature 514, 39–40 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1038/nature13751

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