DNA replication, the basis for biological inheritance, is a fundamental process occurring in all living organisms to copy their DNA. This process is "semiconservative" in that each strand of the original double-stranded DNA molecule serves as template for the reproduction of the complementary strand. Hence, following DNA replication, two identical DNA molecules have been produced from a single double-stranded DNA molecule. Cellular proofreading and error-checking mechanisms ensure near perfect fidelity for DNA replication.
A toxin produced by bacteria as a defense mechanism causes mutations in target bacteria that could help them survive, according to a study published today in eLife.
Chemotherapy not only attacks cancer cells but also targets all cells in the human body. This is the reason why patients receiving this treatment generally experience adverse side effects, like hair loss, physical weakness, and nausea.
Many proteins are required to maintain the structure, and to preserve the genetic integrity, of DNA. Sliding clamps are proteins that increase the efficiency of DNA replication.
A research team has used a novel method that could help resolve the issue of unnecessary genetic changes encountered in the CRISPR-Cas9 technique.
Princess Margaret scientists have revealed how stem cells are able to generate new blood cells throughout our life by looking at vast, uncharted regions of our genetic material that hold important clues to subtle biological changes in these cells.
Each cell in the human body continuously divides to create new cells. This process occurs without humans’ knowledge.
Transcription factor proteins can be described as the light switches of the human genome. These proteins bind to DNA and allow genes to turn “on” or “off.”
According to current estimates, the amount of data produced by humans and machines is rising at an exponential rate, with the digital universe doubling in size every two years.
Using the model Orobanchaceae parasitic plant Phtheirospermum japonicum, scientists from Nagoya University and other research institutes from Japan have discerned the molecular mechanisms underlying plant parasitism and cross-species grafting, pinpointing enzyme β-1,4-glucanase (GH9B3) as an important contributor to both phenomena.
Analysis of the genomes of 28,000 tumors from 66 types of cancer has led to the identification of 568 cancer driver gene.
According to researchers, G-quadruplexes have been demonstrated to play a crucial role in specific types of breast cancer for the first time.
With advances in genome sequencing, cancer treatments have increasingly sought to leverage the idea of "synthetic lethality," exploiting cancer-specific genetic defects to identify targets that are uniquely essential to the survival of cancer cells.
Two rereading proteins on the DNA assembly line collectively work as an emergency stop button to inhibit replication errors.
A team of Chinese scientists from the State Key Laboratory of Drug Research, Shanghai Institute of Materia Medica under the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the State Key Laboratory of Proteomics, National Center for Protein Sciences (Beijing), National Cancer Center/National Clinical Research Center for Cancer/Cancer Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, and Shanghai Jiao Tong University, recently reported a comprehensive proteomic analysis based on 103 Chinese patients with lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD), a leading cause of death among all types of cancer worldwide.
Researchers have discovered that a living cell’s system meant for avoiding genetic damage can fail so much that it would be better off without it.
DNA replication is a process of critical importance to the cell, and must be coordinated precisely to ensure that genomic information is duplicated once and only once during each cell cycle.
The parasites responsible for malaria seem to march to their own beat.The mystery behind the molecular basis of how these parasites synch their rhythm in replication to the host's clock-driven rhythms has been solved.
The p53 gene is crucial in cell biology and thus cell replacement therapy. The function of this gene is to control the cell cycle and stop tumor formation.
Scientists from the University of Copenhagen have identified two major functions of the protein known as RTEL1 during cell division, in a recently performed study.
Homologous recombination is an essential process of DNA repair to maintain genomic integrity of the organism.