Leibniz Institute of Plant Genetics and Crop Plant Research (IPK), OT Gatersleben, D-06466 Seeland, Germany.
Int J Mol Sci. 2021 May 13;22(10):5171. doi: 10.3390/ijms22105171.
DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs), interrupting the genetic information, are elicited by various environmental and endogenous factors. They bear the risk of cell lethality and, if mis-repaired, of deleterious mutation. This negative impact is contrasted by several evolutionary achievements for DSB processing that help maintaining stable inheritance (correct repair, meiotic cross-over) and even drive adaptation (immunoglobulin gene recombination), differentiation (chromatin elimination) and speciation by creating new genetic diversity via DSB mis-repair. Targeted DSBs play a role in genome editing for research, breeding and therapy purposes. Here, I survey possible causes, biological effects and evolutionary consequences of DSBs, mainly for students and outsiders.
DNA 双链断裂 (DSBs) 会中断遗传信息，由各种环境和内源性因素引起。它们会导致细胞死亡的风险，如果修复错误，还会导致有害突变。然而，DSB 的处理也有一些进化上的成就，可以帮助维持稳定的遗传（正确修复、减数分裂交叉），甚至通过 DSB 错误修复来驱动适应（免疫球蛋白基因重组）、分化（染色质消除）和物种形成，从而产生新的遗传多样性。靶向 DSB 在基因组编辑的研究、育种和治疗方面发挥了作用。在这里，我主要为学生和外行人调查了 DSB 的可能原因、生物学效应和进化后果。
