Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 15, 2026

05:55
Detection of DNA Breaks in Dividing Human Cells by Neutral Comet Assay
Published on: August 23, 2024
Lamin A/C depletion enhances DNA damage-induced stalled replication fork arrest
Mayank Singh1, Clayton R Hunt, Raj K Pandita
1Department of Radiation Oncology, UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, Texas, USA.
Molecular and Cellular Biology
|January 16, 2013
Summary
Lamin A/C deficiency impairs genomic stability by hindering replication fork restart after DNA damage. These cells show defects in repairing interstrand cross-links and replication stress, leading to chromosome aberrations.
Area of Science:
- Cell Biology
- Genomics
- Molecular Biology
Background:
- The LMNA gene encodes nuclear proteins lamin A and C (lamin A/C), crucial for nuclear envelope structure.
- LMNA mutations cause altered nuclear morphology, but their impact on genomic stability mechanisms remains unclear.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the role of lamin A/C in maintaining genomic stability in response to DNA damaging agents and replication stress.
Main Methods:
- Assessing cellular responses to ionizing radiation, interstrand cross-link (ICL) agents (cisplatin, camptothecin, mitomycin), and replication stress (hydroxyurea).
- Analyzing DNA damage markers (γ-H2AX), DNA repair factor recruitment (FANCD2, Mre11, CtIP, Rad51, RPA), chromosome aberrations, and replication fork restart.
Main Results:
- Lamin A/C-deficient cells exhibit normal responses to ionizing radiation but are sensitive to ICL agents and replication stress.
- Deficiencies include delayed DNA repair marker removal, reduced recruitment of key repair factors, increased chromosome aberrations, and impaired replication fork restart.
Conclusions:
- Lamin A/C plays a critical role in maintaining genomic stability, particularly in facilitating replication fork restart following stalling induced by ICL damage or replication stress.
- The data suggest lamin A/C is necessary for fork regression, a process preceding DNA damage repair via homologous recombination.
Related Concept Videos
DNA 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...
DNA 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...
Restarting Stalled Replication Forks
DNA replication is initiated at sites containing predefined DNA sequences known as origins of replication. DNA is unwound at these sites by the minichromosome maintenance (MCM) helicase and other factors such as Cdc45 and the associated GINS complex.The unwound single strands are protected by replication protein A (RPA) until DNA polymerase starts synthesizing DNA at the 5’ end of the strand in the same direction as the replication fork. To prevent the replication fork from falling apart, a...
The DNA Replication Fork
An organism’s genome needs to be duplicated in an efficient and error-free manner for its growth and survival. The replication fork is a Y-shaped active region where two strands of DNA are separated and replicated continuously. The coupling of DNA unzipping and complementary strand synthesis is a characteristic feature of a replication fork. Organisms with small circular DNA, such as E. coli, often have a single origin of replication; therefore, they have only two replication forks, one in...
Translesion DNA Polymerases
Translesion (TLS) polymerases rescue stalled DNA polymerases at sites of damaged bases by replacing the replicative polymerase and installing a nucleotide across the damaged site. Doing so, TLS allows additional time for the cell to repair the damage before resuming regular DNA replication.
TLS polymerases are found in all three domains of life - archaea, bacteria, and eukaryotes. Of the different classes of TLS polymerases, members of the Y family are fitted with specialized structures that...
TLS polymerases are found in all three domains of life - archaea, bacteria, and eukaryotes. Of the different classes of TLS polymerases, members of the Y family are fitted with specialized structures that...
Homologous Recombination
The basic reaction of homologous recombination (HR) involves two chromatids that contain DNA sequences sharing a significant stretch of identity. One of these sequences uses a strand from another as a template to synthesize DNA in an enzyme-catalyzed reaction. The final product is a novel amalgamation of the two substrates. To ensure an accurate recombination of sequences, HR is restricted to the S and G2 phases of the cell cycle. At these stages, the DNA has been replicated already and the...

