Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 20, 2026
10:59
Visualizing and Quantifying Endonuclease-Based Site-Specific DNA Damage
Published on: August 21, 2021
DNA damage repair pathways in cancer stem cells
Marcello Maugeri-Saccà1, Monica Bartucci, Ruggero De Maria
1Department of Hematology Oncology and Molecular Medicine, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Viale Regina Elena 299, Rome 00161, Italy. maugeri.marcello@gmail.com
Molecular Cancer Therapeutics
|July 31, 2012
Summary
Cancer stem cells (CSCs) possess unique survival mechanisms, including robust DNA repair, which protect them from cancer therapies. Identifying biomarkers for CSC response is crucial for developing targeted treatments.
Area of Science:
- Oncology
- Cell Biology
- Genetics
Background:
- Tumor-initiating cells with stem-like properties, known as cancer stem cells (CSCs), complicate cancer pathobiology.
- The cancer stem cell model posits that oncogenic transformation targets tissue-resident stem cells.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the functional properties of cancer stem cells.
- To understand the molecular mechanisms protecting CSCs from therapeutic agents.
Main Methods:
- Leveraging knowledge of adult stem cell biology.
- Analyzing molecular mechanisms of CSC survival and DNA damage response.
Main Results:
- CSCs exhibit multifaceted genome integrity protection via DNA damage sensor and repair pathways.
- These protective mechanisms contribute to CSC survival under stressful conditions, including chemotherapy and radiotherapy.
Conclusions:
- Targeted agents against DNA repair effectors are in development.
- Biomarker identification and assay validation are essential for advancing biology-driven clinical trials for CSCs.
More Related Videos
Related Concept Videos
02:36DNA Damage can Stall the Cell Cycle
In response to DNA damage, cells can pause the cell cycle to assess and repair the breaks. However, the cell must check the DNA at certain critical stages during the cell cycle. If the cell cycle pauses before DNA replication, the cells will contain twice the amount of DNA. On the other hand, if cells arrest after DNA replication but before mitosis, they will contain four times the normal amount of DNA. With a host of specialized proteins at their disposal,cells must use the right protein at...
02:36DNA Damage Can Stall the Cell Cycle
In response to DNA damage, cells can pause the cell cycle to assess and repair the breaks. However, the cell must check the DNA at certain critical stages during the cell cycle. If the cell cycle pauses before DNA replication, the cells will contain twice the amount of DNA. On the other hand, if cells arrest after DNA replication but before mitosis, they will contain four times the normal amount of DNA. With a host of specialized proteins at their disposal,cells must use the right protein at...
02:25Overview of DNA Repair
In order to be passed through generations, genomic DNA must be undamaged and error-free. However, every day, DNA in a cell undergoes several thousand to a million damaging events by natural causes and external factors. Ionizing radiation such as UV rays, free radicals produced during cellular respiration, and hydrolytic damage from metabolic reactions can alter the structure of DNA. Damages caused include single-base alteration, base dimerization, chain breaks, and cross-linkage.
Chemically...
Chemically...
02:25Overview of DNA Repair
In order to be passed through generations, genomic DNA must be undamaged and error-free. However, every day, DNA in a cell undergoes several thousand to a million damaging events by natural causes and external factors. Ionizing radiation such as UV rays, free radicals produced during cellular respiration, and hydrolytic damage from metabolic reactions can alter the structure of DNA. Damages caused include single-base alteration, base dimerization, chain breaks, and cross-linkage.
Chemically...
Chemically...
01:38Nucleotide Excision Repair
DNA Distortion and Damage
Cells are regularly exposed to mutagens—factors in the environment that can damage DNA and generate mutations. UV radiation is one of the most common mutagens and is estimated to introduce a significant number of changes in DNA. These include bends or kinks in the structure, which can block DNA replication or transcription. If these errors are not fixed, the damage can cause mutations, which in turn can result in cancer or disease depending on which sequences are...
Cells are regularly exposed to mutagens—factors in the environment that can damage DNA and generate mutations. UV radiation is one of the most common mutagens and is estimated to introduce a significant number of changes in DNA. These include bends or kinks in the structure, which can block DNA replication or transcription. If these errors are not fixed, the damage can cause mutations, which in turn can result in cancer or disease depending on which sequences are...
01:08Nucleotide Excision Repair
Overview