Similarities between DNA repair systems of bacteria

A new study has revealed that there are greater similarities between the DNA repair systems of bacteria and humans than previouslythought. When the chemical “letters” in a cell’s DNA book of instructions are damaged the instructions become difficult to read and the cell may not function properly.
Cells have evolved many mechanisms for repairing their damaged genomes. Like council crews repairing damaged roads these DNA repair mechanisms employ individuals with different specialities: sometimes all that is needed is a small patch on the DNA, like filling in a pothole, machines that can cut away the damaged DNA, and machines that can finish the repair by building new undamaged DNA. cells from humans to bacteria ensure the sections that are being read at that moment (in a process called transcription) are repaired before sections that aren’t being read.
A team led by Nigel Savery University of Bristol has purified each of the many individual components of this “transcription-coupled” DNA repair pathway from the bacterium Escherichia coli and rebuilt the system in a test-tube. and explained how one of the central machines is able to turn itself off when it is not working, in order to decrease the “fuel consumption” of the system.