Grant: Project Grant

Telomeres protect against the gradual shortening of chromosomes, a phenomenon associated with aging but which is also relevant to diseases including cancer. To proliferate, cancer cells elongate their telomeres via various pathways that constitute potential targets for anti-cancer drugs. Many DNA repair factors are recruited to telomeres and contribute to their stability. We have identified the SUB1 DNA-binding protein as a new regulator of telomere stability in human cells. Importantly, we have found that depleting SUB1 selectively kills sarcoma cells by creating problems at their telomeres. We propose here to characterize the roles of SUB1 and other factors important for telomere stability and discover new ways to destroy cancer cells by targeting these structures.