Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jul 11, 2025

Cell Cycle-specific Measurement of γH2AX and Apoptosis After Genotoxic Stress by Flow Cytometry
08:21

Cell Cycle-specific Measurement of γH2AX and Apoptosis After Genotoxic Stress by Flow Cytometry

Published on: September 1, 2019

13.5K

Interplay between the DNA damage response and the life cycle of DNA tumor viruses

Caleb J Studstill1, Michelle Mac2, Cary A Moody3

  • 1Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, 27599, United States.

Tumour Virus Research
|November 2, 2023
PubMed

Insights

Viruses linked to cancer disrupt DNA repair, causing genomic instability. Understanding these viral oncoproteins

Area of Science:

  • Oncology
  • Virology
  • Molecular Biology

Background:

  • Approximately 20% of human cancers are associated with viral infections.
  • DNA tumor viruses induce cancer by disrupting host cell DNA replication and repair.
  • These viruses interfere with the DNA damage response (DDR) pathway, crucial for genome integrity.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To review the molecular mechanisms by which DNA tumor viruses interact with DDR components.
  • To elucidate how these interactions contribute to viral replication and tumorigenesis.
  • To understand the role of viral interference with DDR in virally associated cancers.

Main Methods:

  • Review of current scientific literature on DNA tumor viruses and DDR pathways.
  • Analysis of molecular mechanisms employed by specific viruses (HPV, MCPyV, KSHV, EBV).
  • Examination of the consequences of DDR interference on genomic stability and cancer development.

Main Results:

  • DNA tumor viruses express oncoproteins that mimic or inhibit DDR components.
  • This interference promotes genomic instability and facilitates viral replication and tumorigenesis.
  • Specific mechanisms of interaction for HPV, MCPyV, KSHV, and EBV are discussed.

Conclusions:

  • Understanding the interplay between DNA tumor viruses and DDR is critical for cancer prevention and treatment.
  • Viral manipulation of DDR pathways is a key factor in virally induced cancers.
  • Targeting these viral-host interactions may offer novel therapeutic strategies.

More Related Videos

Visualizing and Quantifying Endonuclease-Based Site-Specific DNA Damage10:59

Visualizing and Quantifying Endonuclease-Based Site-Specific DNA Damage

Published on: August 21, 2021

3.6K
Author Spotlight: Visualizing Single-Stranded DNA During DNA Repair for Therapeutic Insights08:30

Author Spotlight: Visualizing Single-Stranded DNA During DNA Repair for Therapeutic Insights

Published on: December 22, 2023

2.4K

Related Concept Videos

DNA Damage can Stall the Cell Cycle02:37

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...
9.2K
DNA Damage Can Stall the Cell Cycle02:37

DNA Damage Can Stall the Cell Cycle

2.6K
Overview of DNA Repair02:25

Overview 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...
31.1K
Translesion DNA Polymerases02:10

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...
10.0K
Nucleotide Excision Repair01:38

Nucleotide 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...
3.5K
Mutations01:35

Mutations

Mutations are changes in the sequence of DNA. These changes can occur spontaneously or they can be induced by exposure to environmental factors. Mutations can be characterized in a number of different ways: whether and how they alter the amino acid sequence of the protein, whether they occur over a small or large area of DNA, and whether they occur in somatic cells or germline cells.
Chromosomal Alterations Are Large-Scale Mutations
While point mutations are changes in a single nucleotide in...
38.0K