GENOME STABILITY: DNA DAMAGE AND REPAIR
Course #: BIOL 682
Description:
This course will cover major causes (endogenous and exogenous) of DNA damage in cells, different types of DNA damage, and DNA damage repair pathways in prokaryotic and eukaryotic organisms. We will go over the DNA damage repair pathways that the cell uses, including cell cycle/DNA damage checkpoints, to repair damaged DNA upon exposure to exogenous DNA damage or endogenous DNA damage during natural developmental processes. We will also study how chromatin modification and epigenetics regulates DNA damage repair. CRISPR/Cas9 technology that is based on homologous and non-homologous DNA damage repair will also be covered. Cells have evolved a multitude of mechanisms to recognize and repair different kinds of DNA damage (stalled replication forks, DNA double-strand breaks, DNA mismatches, abasic sites, damaged nucleotides, etc) to preserve genome stability. DNA damage contributes to aging and in higher eukaryotes, such as humans, defective responses to DNA damage can cause genome instability and mutation overload, resulting in a number of diseases. These include cancers, neurodegenerative diseases, developmental syndromes, and many more. In this course, we will also learn how different model systems (including yeast, drosophila, zebra fish, mice and human cells) are studied in the laboratory to answer questions concerning DNA damage and genomic instability.
Pre Requisites: Pre-requisite: Graduate degree student in Biology or permission