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Scientists have developed a drug that helps DNA maintain its ability to repair itself. It is a way of preventing the causative proteins that interfere with DNA’s ability to repair itself from damage. Unrepaired DNA damage is considered a cause of aging and cancer. It is explained that drugs that help improve DNA self-repair can provide clues to respond to diseases caused by aging and cancer.
A research team at the University of Cologne in Germany has succeeded in identifying the causal proteins that interfere with somatic cell DNA self-repair and developing a drug that inhibits their activity. The results of the research were published on the 23rd (local time) in the international journal Nature Structure and Molecular Biology.
DNA in humans and animals is damaged by various physical and chemical factors. Typically, UV rays emerging from the outside are one of the causes of DNA stress. Fortunately, DNA has the power to repair itself from damage, but this function gradually weakens as we age. When DNA can no longer self-repair and biological activity ceases, its lifespan ends.
In this study, DREAM, a protein complex, was identified as the cause of weakening the self-repairing power of DNA. DREAM is the name given after the initials of five genes involved in temporarily stopping the growth and division of cells when a problem occurs in a particular gene.
In an experiment using line animals, it was confirmed that the DREAM protein complex interferes with DNA self-repair in somatic cells. As DNA remains vulnerable to DREAM interference, damage that could have been repaired before can no longer be repaired. C. elegans, a lineal animal used in the experiment, is 60% genetically identical to humans and has a short lifespan of 3 to 4 weeks, commonly used in aging research. The same result was confirmed in an experiment confirmed by culturing human somatic cells.
Based on the experimental results, the research team developed a drug targeting the activity of the DREAM protein complex. The drug developed in this way has been confirmed effective in real animal experiments. When this drug was given to mice whose retinas had deteriorated due to ageing, some DNA in the retina was restored on its own and the function of the eyes did not deteriorate.
The research team said the drug developed this time can be used in extreme environments where DNA damage is a concern, such as the space environment. It is also expected that it can be used to cope with aging and cancer according to medical needs. Professor Bjorn Schumacher of the University of Cologne, who led the study, said, “In this study, we identified the main causes of aging and cancer and identified a method to improve the self-healing power of DNA. It will help,” he said.
