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Sources, resolution and physiological relevance of R-loops and RNA-DNA hybrids.

Publication ,  Journal Article
Petermann, E; Lan, L; Zou, L
Published in: Nat Rev Mol Cell Biol
August 2022

RNA-DNA hybrids are generated during transcription, DNA replication and DNA repair and are crucial intermediates in these processes. When RNA-DNA hybrids are stably formed in double-stranded DNA, they displace one of the DNA strands and give rise to a three-stranded structure called an R-loop. R-loops are widespread in the genome and are enriched at active genes. R-loops have important roles in regulating gene expression and chromatin structure, but they also pose a threat to genomic stability, especially during DNA replication. To keep the genome stable, cells have evolved a slew of mechanisms to prevent aberrant R-loop accumulation. Although R-loops can cause DNA damage, they are also induced by DNA damage and act as key intermediates in DNA repair such as in transcription-coupled repair and RNA-templated DNA break repair. When the regulation of R-loops goes awry, pathological R-loops accumulate, which contributes to diseases such as neurodegeneration and cancer. In this Review, we discuss the current understanding of the sources of R-loops and RNA-DNA hybrids, mechanisms that suppress and resolve these structures, the impact of these structures on DNA repair and genome stability, and opportunities to therapeutically target pathological R-loops.

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Published In

Nat Rev Mol Cell Biol

DOI

EISSN

1471-0080

Publication Date

August 2022

Volume

23

Issue

8

Start / End Page

521 / 540

Location

England

Related Subject Headings

  • RNA
  • R-Loop Structures
  • Humans
  • Genomic Instability
  • Developmental Biology
  • DNA Repair
  • DNA
  • 42 Health sciences
  • 32 Biomedical and clinical sciences
  • 31 Biological sciences
 

Citation

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Petermann, E., Lan, L., & Zou, L. (2022). Sources, resolution and physiological relevance of R-loops and RNA-DNA hybrids. Nat Rev Mol Cell Biol, 23(8), 521–540. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41580-022-00474-x
Petermann, Eva, Li Lan, and Lee Zou. “Sources, resolution and physiological relevance of R-loops and RNA-DNA hybrids.Nat Rev Mol Cell Biol 23, no. 8 (August 2022): 521–40. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41580-022-00474-x.
Petermann E, Lan L, Zou L. Sources, resolution and physiological relevance of R-loops and RNA-DNA hybrids. Nat Rev Mol Cell Biol. 2022 Aug;23(8):521–40.
Petermann, Eva, et al. “Sources, resolution and physiological relevance of R-loops and RNA-DNA hybrids.Nat Rev Mol Cell Biol, vol. 23, no. 8, Aug. 2022, pp. 521–40. Pubmed, doi:10.1038/s41580-022-00474-x.
Petermann E, Lan L, Zou L. Sources, resolution and physiological relevance of R-loops and RNA-DNA hybrids. Nat Rev Mol Cell Biol. 2022 Aug;23(8):521–540.

Published In

Nat Rev Mol Cell Biol

DOI

EISSN

1471-0080

Publication Date

August 2022

Volume

23

Issue

8

Start / End Page

521 / 540

Location

England

Related Subject Headings

  • RNA
  • R-Loop Structures
  • Humans
  • Genomic Instability
  • Developmental Biology
  • DNA Repair
  • DNA
  • 42 Health sciences
  • 32 Biomedical and clinical sciences
  • 31 Biological sciences