The genome's guards never sleep: a protein complex that keeps 'jumping genes' in their place

Scattered through our DNA are 'jumping genes' — stretches that can copy themselves into new locations and destabilise the genome. Researchers have discovered that a protein complex called CCR4-NOT acts as a previously unknown guard against them, controlling a family of repressor genes and even policing the RNA the jumping genes produce — two layers of defence. Published in the Journal of Biological Chemistry, the work explains a basic safeguard every cell relies on, and why its failure could contribute to disease.

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