Published on : 01 Nov 2025, 5:50 am

A University of Iowa-led study has revealed the unexpected structure adopted by the DNA repair protein RAD52 as it binds and protects replicating DNA in diving cells. This new structural and mechanistic understanding of the RAD52-DNA complex may help researchers develop new anti-cancer drugs.

“RAD52 is a coveted drug target for treating cancers that have DNA repair deficiencies, including breast and ovarian cancers, and some glioblastomas,” explains Maria Spies, PhD, UI professor of biochemistry and molecular biology in the UI Carver College of Medicine and senior author of the new study that was published April 2 in Nature. “This protein is an attractive target for new anti-cancer drugs because while it is dispensable in healthy human cells, RAD

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