Substantial insight into the mechanisms responding to DNA double-strand breaks has been gained from molecular, biochemical and structural approaches. Attention is now focusing on understanding the interplay between the pathways, how they interface through the cell cycle and the communication with other DNA transactions, such as replication and transcription. Understanding these aspects will facilitate an assessment of how cancer cells have modified these processes to achieve unlimited proliferative capacity and adaptability, and pave the way to identify targets suitable for therapy. Here, we briefly overview the processes responding to double-strand breaks and discuss our current understanding of their interplay in a cellular context.
Keywords: DNA damage response signalling; DNA non-homologous end-joining; DSB repair; homologous recombination; radiation; radiotherapy.
Copyright © 2014 The Royal College of Radiologists. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.