The interface between the ubiquitin family and the DNA damage response

The crucial role of ubiquitin signalling in genome-integrity maintenance was first recognized in 1987 by Stefan Jentsch and Alex Varshavsky, who showed that Rad6-the repair protein involved in DNA damage tolerance-is a ubiquitin-conjugating enzyme. Although this discovery inspired extensive research and led to the discovery of genome surveillance pathways that are fuelled by proteolytic and regulatory ubiquitylation and SUMOylation, it took more than two decades for these fields to meet at a dedicated interdisciplinary conference. This was rectified at an EMBO workshop held between 1 and 5 September on Red Island, Rovinj, Croatia.