Protein complex discovered to control DNA repair

The repair of damage to genetic material (DNA) in the human body is carried out by highly efficient mechanisms that have not yet been fully researched. A scientific team led by Christian Seiser from MedUni Vienna's Center for Anatomy and Cell Biology has now discovered a previously unrecognised control point for these processes. This could lead to a new approach for the development of cancer therapies aimed at inhibiting the repair of damaged cancer cells. The research work was recently published in the journal "Nucleic Acids Research". GSE1-CoREST is the name of the newly discovered complex, which contains three enzymes that control DNA repair processes and could form the basis for novel cancer therapeutics. "In research, these proteins are already associated with cancer, but not in the context that we have now found," emphasises Christian Seiser, who led the study in close collaboration with researchers from the Max Perutz Labs Vienna. The new complex was identified as a controller of DNA repair processes using a precise measurement method (affinity purification mass spectrometry).