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Functional roles and cancer variants of the bifunctional glycosylase NEIL2

Anh B Hua1, Joann B Sweasy1

  • 1Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine, University of Arizona Cancer Center, Tucson, Arizona, USA.

Environmental and Molecular Mutagenesis
|June 13, 2023
PubMed

Insights

The NEIL2 enzyme repairs DNA damage crucial for genomic stability. Variants in NEIL2 are linked to cancer development, highlighting its role in disease.

Area of Science:

  • Molecular Biology
  • Genetics
  • Biochemistry

Background:

  • DNA damage is a daily occurrence, and its repair is vital for preventing genomic instability and cancer.
  • The Base Excision Repair (BER) pathway is essential for correcting DNA lesions, with DNA glycosylases initiating the repair process.
  • The NEIL2 enzyme is a key bifunctional DNA glycosylase within the BER pathway, specializing in excising oxidized bases and abasic sites.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To review the cellular functions of the NEIL2 enzyme.
  • To summarize the current understanding of NEIL2 variants and their association with cancer.
  • To highlight the significance of NEIL2 in maintaining genome integrity and its implications in carcinogenesis.

Main Methods:

  • Literature review of NEIL2's role in DNA repair pathways.
  • Analysis of studies reporting germline and somatic NEIL2 variants.
  • Compilation of research on NEIL2's involvement in cellular functions beyond DNA repair.

Main Results:

  • NEIL2 preferentially repairs cytosine oxidation products and abasic sites across various DNA structures.
  • NEIL2 plays roles in genome maintenance, active demethylation, and immune response modulation.
  • Reported NEIL2 variants exhibit altered expression and enzymatic activity, linking them to various cancers.

Conclusions:

  • NEIL2 is a critical enzyme for DNA repair and genome stability.
  • Dysregulation and variants of NEIL2 are implicated in cancer development.
  • Further research into NEIL2 variants may offer insights into cancer prevention and treatment.
Keywords:
DNA glycosylaseNEIL2abasic sitesbase excision repaircancerinflammationvariants

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