The genetic information in our cells is at constant risk of damage, and sophisticated DNA repair mechanisms have evolved to maintain genome stability. Whilst many of the mechanisms have been studied in molecular detail, their regulation and concerted action is still unclear. A new collaborative research center (CRC 1361) on this topic has now received funding from the German Research Foundation (DFG).

Under the leadership of Prof. Helle Ulrich of Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz (JGU), scientists from Institute of Molecular Biology gGmbH (IMB) in Mainz, Technische Universität Darmstadt, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, and Goethe University Frankfurt have joined forces to establish a new research hub in this biomedically highly relevant field.

The CRC will receive initially about 10 Mio Euro for four years. At IBC2, the group of Ivan Dikic will participate with a project focusing on the replication stress response. The team will analyze mechanisms removing damages like DNA-protein crosslinks which would otherwise result in stalling of replication forks, and will look into cellular strategies of telomere replication.