FUNCTION OF FFA-1/WRN, XBLM AND REPLICATION FOCI

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The research in this lab is to study how eukaryotic cells maintain their genomes. Normal cells can faithfully transmit their genetic information. When cells lose this ability, as having been found in many human genetic diseases, secondary mutations would frequently arise. Most of these mutations will be deleterious to cells and cause early senescence. However, some mutations may activate oncogenes or inactive tumor suppressor genes and cancer will eventually evolve. The experiments proposed here are designed to use the frog egg extract as a model system to study the structure and function of FFA-1, a protein required for the organization of replication foci on chromatin. Specifically, FFA-1 will be depleted from egg extracts and the effect on DNA replication will be assessed. These studies will reveal novel information on how genomic stability is maintained, which may be used to for the design of new anti-cancer drugs and/or drugs that delay the aging process.