Replication of damaged DNA by translesion synthesis in human cells.
Most types of DNA damage block the passage of the replication machinery. In order to bypass these blocks, cells employ special translesion synthesis (TLS) DNA polymerases, which have lower stringency than replicative polymerases. DNA polymerase eta is the major polymerase responsible for bypassing UV lesions in DNA and its absence results in the variant form of the genetic disorder, xeroderma pigmentosum. Other TLS polymerases have specificities for different types of damage, but their precise roles inside the cell have not yet been established. These polymerases are located in replication factories during DNA replication and the polymerase sliding clamp PCNA plays an important role in mediating switching between different polymerases.
Lehmann
Alan R
AR
Genome Damage and Stability Centre, University of Sussex, Falmer, Brighton BN1 9RQ, UK. a.r.lehmann@sussex.ac.uk
D004247:DNA / Q000096:biosynthesis; D004249:DNA Damage; D004260:DNA Repair; D004261:DNA Replication / Q000502:physiology*; D004259:DNA-Directed DNA Polymerase / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans
D004247:DNA; D004259:DNA-Directed DNA Polymerase