Cells know where their DNA is hurt — now scientists can see how they know

Every day, your DNA takes damage, and every day an invisible repair crew fixes it. A University of Ottawa team led by Jean-François Couture and first author Hossein Davarinejad has worked out how the crew finds the right address: a protein called TONSL reads chemical marks on the packaging around DNA, using several 'pockets' that together recognise where repair is needed as cells prepare to divide. Published in Science Advances, the findings also explain, at the molecular level, how mutations in TONSL cause sponastrime dysplasia, an ultrarare inherited skeletal disorder — the kind of understanding that has to come before any treatment can.

SDG 3 · Good health and well-being — Mechanism: tech innovation