{"690506":{"#nid":"690506","#data":{"type":"news","title":"Breakthrough Study Sheds Light on How BRCA\u2011Related Cancers Repair Broken DNA","body":[{"value":"\u003Cp dir=\u0022ltr\u0022\u003E\u003Cem\u003EThis research is shared jointly with the\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/em\u003E\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/news.osu.edu\/best-snapshots-yet-of-dna-repair-protein-relevant-to-brca-mutations\/\u0022\u003E\u003Cem\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EOhio State University\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/em\u003E\u003C\/a\u003E\u003Cem\u003E newsroom.\u003C\/em\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp dir=\u0022ltr\u0022\u003EScientists have captured the most detailed structural images to date of a specific type of protein\u2019s DNA repair process. The research could reveal ways to inhibit the effects of the BRCA1 and BRCA2 gene mutations that heighten the risk for breast, ovarian, and other cancers.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp dir=\u0022ltr\u0022\u003E\u201cThis work lets us see, step by step, one mechanism by which cancer cells could manage to repair their DNA when BRCA genes mutate and fail,\u201d says study co-author\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/chemistry.gatech.edu\/people\/vicki-wysocki\u0022\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EVicki Wysocki\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/a\u003E,\u003Cstrong\u003E\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/strong\u003Ewho is chair of the Georgia Tech\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/chemistry.gatech.edu\/\u0022\u003ESchool of Chemistry and Biochemistry\u003C\/a\u003E. \u201cBy capturing this process in detail, this study opens the door to understanding how those cancerous cells survive and how treatments might disrupt that mechanism.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp dir=\u0022ltr\u0022\u003EDesignated as a Breakthrough Article, the study\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/academic.oup.com\/nar\/article\/54\/8\/gkag320\/8661651?login=false\u0022\u003E\u003Cem\u003EMechanism of single-strand annealing from native mass spectrometry and cryo-EM structures of RAD52 homolog Mgm101\u003C\/em\u003E\u003C\/a\u003E was recently published in \u003Cem\u003ENucleic Acids Research.\u003C\/em\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp dir=\u0022ltr\u0022\u003EIn addition to Wysocki, who is a professor in the\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/chemistry.gatech.edu\/\u0022\u003ESchool of Chemistry and Biochemistry\u003C\/a\u003E and a professor emerita at Ohio State University, the Georgia Tech research team included co-first author\u0026nbsp;\u003Cstrong\u003EZihao Qi,\u003C\/strong\u003E a Ph.D. candidate in the\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/sites.gatech.edu\/wysocki-group\/\u0022\u003EWysocki Lab\u003C\/a\u003E.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp dir=\u0022ltr\u0022\u003EThey were joined by Ohio State researchers co-first author\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/osbp.osu.edu\/people\/wheat.35\u0022\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003ECarter Wheat\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/a\u003E and senior author\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/medicine.osu.edu\/find-a-researcher\/charles-bell-100003449\u0022\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003ECharles Bell\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/a\u003E, who is a professor of biological chemistry and pharmacology in the \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/medicine.osu.edu\/news#\/search\/brac\u0022\u003ECollege of Medicine\u003C\/a\u003E. Additional authors include Metro High School student\u0026nbsp;\u003Cstrong\u003EMiqdad Hussain\u003C\/strong\u003E and\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/www.cas.org\/\u0022\u003ECAS\u003C\/a\u003E researcher \u003Cstrong\u003EKaterina Zakharova\u003C\/strong\u003E.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Ch2 dir=\u0022ltr\u0022\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EWhen BRCA Fails\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/h2\u003E\u003Cp dir=\u0022ltr\u0022\u003ENormally, BRCA genes help prevent cancer by acting as tumor suppressors \u2014 producing proteins that help repair broken DNA. When cancer cells lack the tumor-suppression function of normal BRCA genes, research has shown that a protein called RAD52 performs DNA repair.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp dir=\u0022ltr\u0022\u003ESince RAD52 allows cancer cells to survive and replicate without tumor suppression, researchers have wondered if blocking it would kill the cancerous cells. Blocking RAD52, however, requires fully understanding its repair activities, which have been difficult to capture with even the most sophisticated techniques.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp dir=\u0022ltr\u0022\u003EDNA strands break every day in cells, which is why proteins exist to fix the breaks and keep cellular processes running smoothly, the team says. But because repairs must happen quickly and human proteins are often more complex than their ancestral counterparts, even the most advanced imaging equipment can\u2019t capture every step in the process.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp dir=\u0022ltr\u0022\u003EIn order to understand RAD52 better, the research team turned to its ancestral protein, Mgm101, to observe several key steps in its DNA repair process.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Ch2 dir=\u0022ltr\u0022\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EA Clearer Image\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/h2\u003E\u003Cp dir=\u0022ltr\u0022\u003EThe team decided to leverage multiple types of imaging. Wysocki\u2019s lab at Georgia Tech conducted native mass spectrometry and mass photometry, using light to measure masses of protein-DNA complexes. The results showed that the ancestral protein Mgm101 assembled from a single copy of itself into a large multi-unit ring composed of 19 copies of the protein.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp dir=\u0022ltr\u0022\u003E\u201cThis ring is essentially a template,\u201d Wysocki explains. \u201cThe first strand of DNA can come down, and then the second strand comes on and starts being annealed to the first strand.\u201d Annealing occurs when two single strands of DNA come together to form the characteristic double helix structure.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp dir=\u0022ltr\u0022\u003EThe findings were supported by what Bell\u2019s lab determined using cryogenic electron microscopy, observing structures floating in solution and frozen in a thin layer of ice.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp dir=\u0022ltr\u0022\u003E\u201cRAD52 high-resolution structures have been determined with single-stranded DNA, but not with the two DNAs that it\u2019s trying to anneal,\u201d Bell says. \u201cIts job is to bind single-stranded DNA and anneal it to its complement sequence. It\u2019s been captured structurally, but only in a few states relevant to the reaction.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp dir=\u0022ltr\u0022\u003E\u201cHere, we have more of the states along the full pathway from substrate, to intermediate and product. And the duplex intermediate is a conformation that\u2019s never been seen before.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp dir=\u0022ltr\u0022\u003EPreviously, researchers were unsure if this DNA repair process used one protein ring or two rings working together, the team says. Their findings show that just one ring is used\u0026nbsp;\u2014 and that\u0026nbsp;this is likely consistent across different species.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Ch2 dir=\u0022ltr\u0022\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EPaths to Treatment\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/h2\u003E\u003Cp dir=\u0022ltr\u0022\u003ENext, the team plans to try capturing the same phases of the DNA repair process with RAD52 from humans. A clearer understanding of how this family of proteins binds to DNA strands and coaxes them back together after a break provides insights for drug targets that could halt the process in cancer cells empowered by mutated BRCA genes, they say.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp dir=\u0022ltr\u0022\u003E\u201cIt\u2019s still a proposed mechanism: Just because we see these snapshots of the process doesn\u2019t mean we know all the details, but we do have the best snapshots for any protein that does this single-strand annealing,\u201d says Bell. \u201cThis focuses our strategies for drug development.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp dir=\u0022ltr\u0022\u003E\u003Cem\u003EDOI:\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/em\u003E\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1093\/nar\/gkag320\u0022\u003E\u003Cem\u003Ehttps:\/\/doi.org\/10.1093\/nar\/gkag320\u003C\/em\u003E\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp dir=\u0022ltr\u0022\u003E\u003Cem\u003EFunding: This work was supported by the U.S. National Science Foundation and the National Institutes of Health. The cryo-EM data were collected at Ohio State\u2019s Center for Electron Microscopy and Analysis and processed using the Ohio Supercomputer Center.\u003C\/em\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E","summary":"","format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":"","field_summary":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cem\u003EThe research captures detailed snapshots of a process that helps cancer cells survive \u2014 and may point to new treatments.\u003C\/em\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"field_summary_sentence":[{"value":"The research captures detailed snapshots of a process that helps cancer cells survive \u2014 and may point to new treatments."}],"uid":"35599","created_gmt":"2026-05-27 13:56:51","changed_gmt":"2026-06-05 16:50:08","author":"sperrin6","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","field_article_url":"","location":"Atlanta, GA","dateline":{"date":"2026-05-27T00:00:00-04:00","iso_date":"2026-05-27T00:00:00-04:00","tz":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"hg_media":{"680421":{"id":"680421","type":"image","title":"Vicki Wysocki","body":"\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EVicki Wysocki\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E","created":"1780677825","gmt_created":"2026-06-05 16:43:45","changed":"1780677825","gmt_changed":"2026-06-05 16:43:45","alt":"Vicki Wysocki","file":{"fid":"264678","name":"Vicki-Wysocki.jpg","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/2026\/06\/05\/Vicki-Wysocki.jpg","image_full_path":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/2026\/06\/05\/Vicki-Wysocki.jpg","mime":"image\/jpeg","size":299719,"path_740":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/2026\/06\/05\/Vicki-Wysocki.jpg?itok=coGCKGlG"}}},"media_ids":["680421"],"related_links":[{"url":"https:\/\/news.osu.edu\/best-snapshots-yet-of-dna-repair-protein-relevant-to-brca-mutations\/","title":"Best snapshots yet of DNA repair protein relevant to BRCA mutations"}],"groups":[{"id":"1278","name":"College of Sciences"},{"id":"1188","name":"Research Horizons"},{"id":"85951","name":"School of Chemistry and Biochemistry"}],"categories":[{"id":"138","name":"Biotechnology, Health, Bioengineering, Genetics"},{"id":"140","name":"Cancer Research"},{"id":"146","name":"Life Sciences and Biology"},{"id":"135","name":"Research"},{"id":"134","name":"Student and Faculty"}],"keywords":[{"id":"187915","name":"go-researchnews"},{"id":"192250","name":"cos-microbial"}],"core_research_areas":[{"id":"39441","name":"Bioengineering and Bioscience"},{"id":"193653","name":"Georgia Tech Research Institute"}],"news_room_topics":[],"event_categories":[],"invited_audience":[],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003E\u003Ca href=\u0022mailto:sperrin6@gatech.edu\u0022\u003ESelena Langner\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EResearch Writer \/ Editor\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EGeorgia Tech College of Sciences\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"email":[],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}},"688718":{"#nid":"688718","#data":{"type":"news","title":"Georgia Tech Receives Up to $21.8M Award in \u2018Unprecedented\u2019 Push to Treat Lymphatic Disease","body":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EThe Georgia Institute of Technology has been awarded up to $21.8 million from the \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/arpa-h.gov\/\u0022\u003EAdvanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H)\u003C\/a\u003E to deliver a first-of-its-kind therapy to patients with lymphatic disease.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EFor many of these patients, care has long meant pain and disfigurement alongside other severe side effects, rather than receiving treatment that addresses the disease itself. This new ARPA-H award marks a potential turning point.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003ELead researcher\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/me.gatech.edu\/faculty\/thomas\u0022\u003ESusan Napier Thomas\u003C\/a\u003E, Woodruff Professor in the\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/www.me.gatech.edu\/\u0022\u003EGeorge W. Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering\u003C\/a\u003E and the\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/research.gatech.edu\/bio\u0022\u003EParker H. Petit Institute of Bioengineering and Bioscience\u003C\/a\u003E (IBB), has collaborated with her colleague\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/www.me.gatech.edu\/faculty\/dixon\u0022\u003EJ. Brandon Dixon\u003C\/a\u003E, Woodruff Professor in the Woodruff School and IBB, for more than a decade on this project. The research partners are driven by the lack of meaningful treatment options available to patients.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cFunding support at this level is unprecedented,\u201d Thomas said. \u201cIt finally gives us a chance to move beyond symptom management and toward real treatment. We\u2019re addressing an underserved population with a huge unmet need.\u201d\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Ch2\u003EA Gap in Care\u003C\/h2\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe lymphatic system helps keep fluid moving through the body and plays a key role in immune health. When it does not function properly, fluid can build up in tissues, causing chronic pain and other long-term complications. Thomas noted that despite its toll on patients, lymphatic disease has lagged decades behind cardiovascular care in both treatment and research investment.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cWe are excited about this groundbreaking project in lymphatic engineering,\u201d said \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/www.me.gatech.edu\/faculty\/garcia\u0022\u003EAndr\u00e9s Garc\u00eda,\u003C\/a\u003E IBB executive director. \u201cBy uniting interdisciplinary expertise, this work addresses long-standing challenges in lymphatic disease and moves meaningful solutions closer to the patients who need them most.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Ch2\u003EWhat Comes Next\u003C\/h2\u003E\u003Cp\u003EIn the coming years, Thomas, Dixon, and their research partners will work toward an initial human trial, with an early focus on rare lymphatic conditions in children, as well as chronic disease in adults.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cThis award reflects Georgia Tech\u2019s growing leadership in using engineering to solve some of healthcare\u2019s biggest challenges,\u201d said \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/www.me.gatech.edu\/user\/1078\u0022\u003ECarolyn Seepersad\u003C\/a\u003E, Eugene C. Gwaltney Jr. School Chair and professor in the Woodruff School. \u201cIt reinforces the Institute\u2019s role in advancing innovations that improve patient care and strengthen Georgia\u2019s position as a hub for health technology and biomedical innovation.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe award was made through ARPA-H\u2019s Groundbreaking Lymphatic Interventions and Drug Exploration (\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/arpa-h.gov\/explore-funding\/programs\/glide\u0022\u003EGLIDE\u003C\/a\u003E) program led by Dr. Kimberley Steele.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cem\u003EThis research was funded, in part, by the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H) under Agreement No. 1AY2AX000137-01. The views and conclusions contained in this document are those of the authors and should not be interpreted as representing the official policies, either expressed or implied, of the U.S. government.\u003C\/em\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E","summary":"","format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":"","field_summary":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EGeorgia Tech has been awarded up to $21.8 million from the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H) to develop a first-of-its-kind therapy for lymphatic disease, a condition that has long lacked effective treatment options. Led by Woodruff Professors Susan Napier Thomas and J. Brandon Dixon, the project aims to move beyond symptom management and address the disease itself, offering hope to patients who often experience chronic pain and disfigurement. Funded through ARPA-H\u2019s GLIDE program, the initiative will focus on advancing the therapy toward initial human trials, including for rare pediatric conditions. The award highlights Georgia Tech\u2019s leadership in engineering-driven healthcare innovation and its commitment to improving care for underserved patient populations.\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"field_summary_sentence":[{"value":"The project aims to move lymphatic disease out of the medical margins and toward patients who have had few meaningful treatment options."}],"uid":"36410","created_gmt":"2026-03-04 14:45:56","changed_gmt":"2026-03-13 21:29:44","author":"mazriel3","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","field_article_url":"","location":"Atlanta, GA","dateline":{"date":"2026-03-04T00:00:00-05:00","iso_date":"2026-03-04T00:00:00-05:00","tz":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"hg_media":{"679638":{"id":"679638","type":"image","title":"Thomas\/Dixon REVISED headshots","body":null,"created":"1773436990","gmt_created":"2026-03-13 21:23:10","changed":"1773437095","gmt_changed":"2026-03-13 21:24:55","alt":"Headshots of Susan Thomas and J. Brandon DIxon","file":{"fid":"263821","name":"biggiesmalls.png","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/2026\/03\/13\/biggiesmalls.png","image_full_path":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/2026\/03\/13\/biggiesmalls.png","mime":"image\/png","size":6814046,"path_740":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/2026\/03\/13\/biggiesmalls.png?itok=ujVE7fCX"}}},"media_ids":["679638"],"groups":[{"id":"1188","name":"Research Horizons"}],"categories":[{"id":"140","name":"Cancer Research"}],"keywords":[{"id":"187915","name":"go-researchnews"},{"id":"385","name":"cancer"}],"core_research_areas":[{"id":"39441","name":"Bioengineering and Bioscience"},{"id":"193658","name":"Commercialization"}],"news_room_topics":[],"event_categories":[],"invited_audience":[],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EMichelle Azriel \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; Writer, Editor Research Communications\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"email":["mazriel3@gatech.edu"],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}