title: DNA damage foci: Meaning and significance.
abstract: The discovery of DNA damage response proteins such as γH2AX, ATM, 53BP1, RAD51, and the MRE11/RAD50/NBS1 complex, that accumulate and/or are modified in the vicinity of a chromosomal DNA double-strand break to form microscopically visible, subnuclear foci, has revolutionized the detection of these lesions and has enabled studies of the cellular machinery that contributes to their repair. Double-strand breaks are induced directly by a number of physical and chemical agents, including ionizing radiation and radiomimetic drugs, but can also arise as secondary lesions during replication and DNA repair following exposure to a wide range of genotoxins. Here we aim to review the biological meaning and significance of DNA damage foci, looking specifically at a range of different settings in which such markers of DNA damage and repair are being studied and interpreted.
authors.affiliation: Public Health England, Centre for Radiation, Chemical and Environmental Hazards, Chilton, United Kingdom.|Department of Radiotherapy, Laboratory of Radiation Biology and Experimental Radiation Oncology, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany.
authors.forename: Kai
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0001-7414-5729
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Rothkamm
authors.affiliation: Public Health England, Centre for Radiation, Chemical and Environmental Hazards, Chilton, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Stephen
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Barnard
authors.affiliation: Public Health England, Centre for Radiation, Chemical and Environmental Hazards, Chilton, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Jayne
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Moquet
authors.affiliation: Public Health England, Centre for Radiation, Chemical and Environmental Hazards, Chilton, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Michele
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ellender
authors.affiliation: Public Health England, Centre for Radiation, Chemical and Environmental Hazards, Chilton, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Zohaib
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Rana
authors.affiliation: Department of Cellular Pathology, Oxford University Hospitals, Headley Way, Headington, Oxford, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Susanne
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Burdak-Rothkamm
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000378:metabolism; D053903:DNA Breaks, Double-Stranded; D004249:DNA Damage / Q000502:physiology* / Q000528:radiation effects; D004260:DNA Repair; D006657:Histones / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D009152:Mutagenicity Tests / Q000379:methods*; D011834:Radiation Monitoring / Q000379:methods; D011839:Radiation, Ionizing
chemical_list: D015415:Biomarkers; C468783:H2AX protein, human; D006657:Histones
keywords: 53BP1; DNA double-strand break; genotoxicity; ionizing radiation; γH2AX