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Updated: May 16, 2026

Visualizing and Quantifying Endonuclease-Based Site-Specific DNA Damage
Published on: August 21, 2021
Linking abnormal mitosis to the acquisition of DNA damage
1Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Department of Pediatric Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Children's Hospital, Department of Cell Biology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA. neil_ganem@dfci.harvard.edu
Abstract:
Cellular defects that impair the fidelity of mitosis promote chromosome missegregation and aneuploidy. Increasing evidence reveals that errors in mitosis can also promote the direct and indirect acquisition of DNA damage and chromosome breaks. Consequently, deregulated cell division can devastate the integrity of the normal genome and unleash a variety of oncogenic stimuli that may promote transformation. Recent work has shed light on the mechanisms that link abnormal mitosis with the development of DNA damage, how cells respond to such affronts, and the potential impact on tumorigenesis.
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