Scientists Discover First 'DNA Ambulance'
Researchers have discovered how severely damaged DNA is transported within a cell and how it is repaired. It's a discovery that could unlock secrets into how cancer operates -- a disease that two in five Canadians will develop in their lifetime. "Scientists knew that severely injured DNA was taken to specialized 'hospitals' in the cell to be repaired, but the big mystery was how it got there," said Karim Mekhail, a Professor in the University of Toronto Faculty of Medicine's Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathobiology. "We've now discovered the DNA 'ambulance' and the road it takes." Mekhail discovered this DNA ambulance, which is a motor protein complex, by using yeast cells. His research was recently published in Nature Communications. read more