A study published in Nature has identified a new mechanism that controls DNA’s ability to replicate – and thereby a cell’s ability to divide. A protein, PAF15, acts as the brake, preventing the replication machinery from becoming overloaded and protecting cells from replication catastrophe. 🧪
“I think it’s a real mistake to forget where the pipeline for all this begins.”
John Diffley reflects on the importance of basic research, his mission to decode DNA replication and recreate it in the lab, and the scientific optimism of the 1960s that helped shape it.
www.crick.ac.uk/news/2026-03...
Nature research paper: Androgen activity in the male embryonic hindbrain drives lethal PFA ependymoma
go.nature.com/4t2SpS5
📣 New meeting on RAD51 biology!
🌐 lnkd.in/eyV8dY_S
🔬 🧬 Come explore the latest discoveries on RAD51 biology, and its central roles in DNA repair, replication, and meiosis.
✨ Fantastic invited speakers and ample opportunities for oral presentations.
Another great opportunity for genome integrity / replication stress aficionados to attend two excellent seminars with a simple click. Join us in a few days (Tue April 7th)! 👇
Video
Another great science appointment is coming up with @centromellone.bsky.social, Michele Pagano and Gergely Róna!
Join us live on Tuesday, March 3rd at 5pm (Rome) / 11am (NYC).
Zoom link: uniroma1.zoom.us/j/95149984403
Register here to stay in the loop: docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1F...
We are excited to launch the full program for the 2026-2027 season of the Genome Integrity Italian Network webinars!
Join us every first Tuesday of the month via Zoom: uzh.zoom.us/j/6598481621...
Subscribe here to receive a calendar file with all webinars: docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1F...
Excited to finally share our preprint on mapping the genetic interaction network of the DNA damage response with combinatorial knockout screens led by Sam Hayward, Alina Vaitsiankova, and Tomas Lama-Diaz! www.biorxiv.org/cgi/content/...
The Francis Crick Institute
Nature Portfolio
The DNA damage response (DDR) is a complex network of cellular pathways that ensures the faithful maintenance of our genomes upon a wide array of genomic insults. To elucidate the functional architect...
Happy to share our new review in @annualreviews.bsky.social on abasic sites and their impact on DNA replication written by @angelotaglialatela.bsky.social.
www.annualreviews.org/content/jour...
Alberto Ciccia
Alberto Ciccia
Apurinic/apyrimidinic (AP) sites, also known as abasic sites, are among the most frequent DNA lesions, arising spontaneously or as intermediates in base excision repair. Their structural impediment to...
Androgen activity in the male embryonic hindbrain prolongs hindbrain differentiation in male individuals and drives sex differences in the incidence and prognosis of posterior fossa type A (PFA) ependymoma, an aggressive childhood brain tumour.
