 Function of translesion polymerases in G0 and G1 phase of the cell cycle and in non-replicating cells, such as neurons THESIS TOPIC PROPOSAL Institute: Budapest University of Technology and Economics bio, environmental and chemical engineering George A. Olah Doctoral School of Chemistry and Chemical Technology Thesis supervisor: Gergely Róna belső konzulens: Beáta Vértessy G. Location of studies (in Hungarian): HUN-REN Research Centre for Natural Sciences - Institute of Enzymology Abbreviation of location of studies: TTK Description of the research topic: Each of our cells must cope with tens of thousands of DNA lesions a day. Depending on the exact nature of these lesions and the cell cycle phase the cells are in, the repair will be carried out by one of the DNA repair pathways. Cells face a special challenge when they encounter a DNA lesion when either performing DNA replication in S phase or while performing DNA repair synthesis (which is the gap-filling step of the DNA repair process). The catalytic site of the replicative DNA polymerases, utilized during the DNA elongation processes, is compact and cannot accommodate most DNA lesions. Consequently, DNA synthesis arrests at most forms of DNA lesions. This is when a polymerase switch is initialized on PCNA, where the replicative DNA polymerase is replaced by translesion polymerases to bypass these lesions. This process is called translesion synthesis (TLS). While TLS polymerase activation is well studied during S phase in replicating cells, almost nothing is known about their function in other cell cycle phases (like G0 and G1) or in non-replicating cells. Our preliminary data suggest an important role for TLS polymerases even outside S phase, which we will characterize in detail. Number of students who can be accepted: 1 Deadline for application: 2024-05-30 |