Cell Biology Commons^™

Mechanisms Adopted By Dengue-2 Viruses To Induce Autophagy In Mammalian Cells, Sounak Ghosh Roy

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Dengue, the most rapidly spreading flavivirus, threatens to affect almost half of the human global population. We previously showed that dengue-2 protects canine kidney cells (MDCK) from cytotoxic chemicals. We showed, independently, that cell protection, as well as viral replication and maturation, are positively regulated by PI3K-dependent autophagy. However, we had not identified the specific pathway that induces autophagy in infected cells. The current study explores the role of a specific branch of the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress-mediated Unfolded Protein Response (UPR), the PERK/eIF2α/ATF4 pathway in the induction of autophagy by …

Astromimetics: The Dawn Of A New Era For (Bio)Materials Science?, Vuk Uskoković, Victoria M. Wu

Pharmacy Faculty Articles and Research

Composite, multifunctional fine particles are likely to be at the frontier of materials science in the foreseeable future. Here we present a submicron composite particle that mimics the stratified structure of the Earth by having a zero-valent iron core, a silicate/silicide mantle, and a thin carbonaceous crust resembling the biosphere and its biotic deposits. Particles were formulated in a stable colloidal form and made to interact with various types of healthy and cancer cells in vitro. A selective anticancer activity was observed, promising from the point of view of the intended use of the particles for tumor targeting across the …

Evaluation Of Endothelial Cell Responses To Elevated Glucose, Gabriella Sugerman

Master's Theses

Developing a tissue-engineered Blood Vessel Mimic (BVM) to represent diabetic macrovascular disease could expedite design of new vascular devices specifically tailored to diabetic patients. In contribution toward this model, this thesis assessed Human Umbilical Vein Endothelial Cell (HUVEC) responses to high glucose conditions. Interleukin 6 (IL-6) and Cluster of Differentiation 36 (CD36) were selected to signify oxidative stress activity, a hallmark of diabetic macrovascular disease. Next, activity of potential reference genes B2M, HPRT1, and ACTB was assessed. All genes were found to exceed acceptable variability, so the E-ΔC T method of data analysis was selected. Next, cellular responses to high …

“Do We Know Jack” About Jak? A Closer Look At Jak/Stat Signaling Pathway, Emira Bousoik, Hamidreza Montazeri Aliabadi

Pharmacy Faculty Articles and Research

Janus tyrosine kinase (JAK) family of proteins have been identified as crucial proteins in signal transduction initiated by a wide range of membrane receptors. Among the proteins in this family JAK2 has been associated with important downstream proteins, including signal transducers and activators of transcription (STATs), which in turn regulate the expression of a variety of proteins involved in induction or prevention of apoptosis. Therefore, the JAK/STAT signaling axis plays a major role in the proliferation and survival of different cancer cells, and may even be involved in resistance mechanisms against molecularly targeted drugs. Despite extensive research focused on the …

Antioxidants And Cancer: Theories, Techniques, And Trials In Preventing Cancer, Gloria M. Calaf, Francisco Aguayo, Consolato M. Sergi, Angeles Juarranz, Debasish Roy

Publications and Research

No abstract provided.

Expression Of Androgen Receptor And Cancer Stem Cell Markers (Cd44 +/Cd24 - And Aldh1 +): Prognostic Implications In Invasive Breast Cancer, Nazia Riaz, Romana Idress, Sadia Habib, Iqbal Azam Syed, El Nasir Lalani

Section of General Surgery

Background: Androgen receptor (AR) has emerged as a significant prognostic marker in early breast cancer (BCa). Association of AR with cancer stem cell (CSC) markers in BCa is unknown. Aim of the present study was to evaluate the immunohistochemical expression of AR, CD44, CD24 and ALDH1 in a cohort of Pakistani patients diagnosed with invasive BCa and to correlate the expression with 5- year disease free survival.
Patients and methods: We evaluated immunohistochemical expression AR, CD44, CD24 and ALDH1 in formalin fixed paraffin embedded archival blocks of 166 cases of primary invasive BCa (stage I-III) and correlated the expression with …

Spontaneous Dna Damage To The Nuclear Genome Promotes Senescence, T Redox Imbalance And Aging, Andria R. Robinson, Matthew J. Yousefzadeh, Tania A. Rozgaja, Jin Wang, Xuesen Li, Jeremy S. Tilstra, Chelsea H. Feldman, Siobhan Q. Gregg, Caroline H. Johnson, Erin M. Skoda, Marie-Celine Frantz, Harris Bell-Temin, Hannah Pope-Varsalona, Aditi U. Gurkar, Luigi A. Nasto, Rena A.S. Robinson, Heike Fuhrmann-Stroissnigg, Jolanta Czerwinska, Sara J. Mcgowan, Nadiezhda Cantu-Madellin, Jamie B. Harris, Salony Maniar, Mark A. Ross, Christy E. Trussoni, Nicholas F. Larusso, Eugenia Cifuentes-Pagano, Patrick J. Pagano, Barbara Tudek, Nam V. Vo, Lora H. Rigatti, Patricia L. Opresko, Donna B. Stolz, Simon C. Watkins, Christin E. Burd, Claudette M. St, Croix, Gary Siuzdak, Nathan A. Yates, Paul D. Robbins, Yinsheng Wang, Peter Wipf, Eric E. Kelley, Laura J. Neidernhofer

Faculty & Staff Scholarship

Accumulation of senescent cells over time contributes to aging and age-related diseases. However, what drives senescence in vivo is not clear. Here we used a genetic approach to determine if spontaneous nuclear DNA damage is sufficient to initiate senescence in mammals. Ercc1-/Δ mice with reduced expression of ERCC1-XPF endonuclease have impaired capacity to repair the nuclear genome. Ercc1-/Δ mice accumulated spontaneous, oxidative DNA damage more rapidly than wild-type (WT) mice. As a consequence, senescent cells accumulated more rapidly in Ercc1-/Δ mice compared to repair-competent animals. However, the levels of DNA damage and senescent cells in Ercc1-/Δ mice never exceeded that …

Mlk Book Read 2018 (Research Materials), Holy Cross Libraries

Library Resources for Campus Events

A bibliography of resources available through the Holy Cross Libraries which provide additional information related to the MLK Winter Book Read, based on the best-seller “The Immortal LIfe of Henrietta Lacks” by Rebecca Skoot.

Alteration Of Metabolite Profiling By Cold Atmospheric Plasma Treatment In Human Myeloma Cells, Dehui Xu, Yujing Xu, Ning Ning, Qingjie Cui, Zhijie Liu, Xiaohua Wang, Dingxin Liu, Hailan Chen, Michael G. Kong

Bioelectrics Publications

BACKGROUND: Despite new progress of chemotherapy in multiple myeloma (MM) clinical treatment, MM is still a refractory disease and new technology is needed to improve the outcomes and prolong the survival. Cold atmospheric plasma is a rapidly developed technology in recent years, which has been widely applied in biomedicine. Although plasma could efficiently inactivate various tumor cells, the effects of plasma on tumor cell metabolism have not been studied yet.

METHODS: In this study, we investigated the metabolite profiling of He plasma treatment on myeloma tumor cells by gas-chromatography time-of-flight (GC-TOF) mass-spectrometry. Meanwhile, by bioinformatic analysis such as GO and …

Nano-Pulse Stimulation Ablates Orthotopic Rat Hepatocellular Carcinoma And Induces Innate And Adaptive Memory Immune Mechanisms That Prevent Recurrence, Brittany P. Lassiter, Siqi Guo, Stephen J. Beebe

Bioelectrics Publications

Nano-pulse stimulation (NPS), previously called nsPEFs, induced a vaccine-like effect after ablation of orthotopic N1-S1 hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), protecting rats from subsequent challenges with N1-S1 cells. To determine immunity, immune cell phenotypes were analyzed in naïve, treated and protected rats. NPS provides a positive, post-ablation immuno-therapeutic outcome by alleviating immunosuppressive T regulatory cells (Treg) in the tumor microenvironment (TME), allowing dendritic cell influx and inducing dynamic changes in natural killer cells (NKs), NKT-cells and T-lymphocytes in blood, spleen and liver. NPS induced specific increases in NKs and NKT-cells expressing CD8 and activation receptors CD314-NKG2D and CD161 (NK1.1) in the TME …

Tumor Cell Death After Electrotransfer Of Plasmid Dna Is Associated With Cytosolic Dna Sensor Upregulation, Katarina Znidar, Masa Bosnjak, Nina Semenova, Olga N. Pakhomova, Loree Heller, Maja Cemazar

Bioelectrics Publications

Cytosolic DNA sensors are a subgroup of pattern recognition receptors (PRRs) and are activated by the abnormal presence of the DNA in the cytosol. Their activation leads to the upregulation of pro-inflammatory cytokines and chemokines and can also induce cell death. The presence of cytosolic DNA sensors and inflammatory cytokines in TS/A murine mammary adenocarcinoma and WEHI 164 fibrosarcoma cells was demonstrated using real time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), western blotting and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). After electrotransfer of plasmid DNA (pDNA) using two pulse protocols, the upregulation of DNA-depended activator of interferon regulatory factor or Z-DNA binding …

Cold Atmospheric Plasma As A Potential Tool For Multiple Myeloma Treatment, Dehui Xu, Yujing Xu, Qingjie Cui, Dingxin Liu, Zhijie Liu, Xiaohua Wang, Yanjie Yang, Niaojuan Feng, Rong Liang, Hailan Chen, Kai Ye, Michael G. Kong

Bioelectrics Publications

Multiple myeloma (MM) is a fatal and incurable hematological malignancy thus new therapy need to be developed. Cold atmospheric plasma, a new technology that could generate various active species, could efficiently induce various tumor cells apoptosis. More details about the interaction of plasma and tumor cells need to be addressed before the application of gas plasma in clinical cancer treatment. In this study, we demonstrate that He+O₂ plasma could efficiently induce myeloma cell apoptosis through the activation of CD95 and downstream caspase cascades. Extracellular and intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) accumulation is essential for CD95-mediated cell apoptosis in response …

Upregulation Of Dna Sensors In B16.F10 Melanoma Spheroid Cells After Electrotransfer Of Pdna, Katarina Znidar, Masa Bosnjak, Tanja Jesenko, Loree C. Heller, Maja Cemazar

Bioelectrics Publications

Increased expression of cytosolic DNA sensors, a category of pattern recognition receptor, after control plasmid DNA electrotransfer was observed in our previous studies on B16.F10 murine melanoma cells. This expression was correlated with the upregulation of proinflammatory cytokines and chemokines and was associated with cell death. Here, we expanded our research to include the influence of features of cells in a 3-dimensional environment, which better represents the tumors’ organization in vivo. Our results show that lower number of cells were transfected in spheroids compared to 2-dimensional cultures, that growth was delayed after electroporation alone or after electrotransfer of plasmid …

Nano-Pulse Stimulation For The Treatment Of Pancreatic Cancer And The Changes In Immune Profile, Sigi Guo, Niculina I. Burcus, James Hornef, Yu Jing, Chunqi Jiang, Richard Heller, Stephen J. Beebe

Bioelectrics Publications

A Pancreatic cancer is a notorious malignant neoplasm with an extremely poor prognosis. Current standard of care is rarely effective against late-stage pancreatic cancer. In this study, we assessed nanopulse stimulation (NPS) as a local treatment for pancreatic cancer in a syngeneic mouse Pan02 pancreatic cancer model and characterized corresponding changes in the immune profile. A single NPS treatment either achieved complete tumor regression or prolonged overall survival in animals with partial tumor regression. While this is very encouraging, we also explored if this local ablation effect could also result in immune stimulation, as was observed when NPS led to …

Electrotransfer Of Different Control Plasmids Elicits Different Antitumor Effectiveness In B16.F10 Melanoma, Masa Bosnjak, Tanjo Jesenko, Urska Kamensek, Gregor Sersa, Jaka Lavrencak, Loree Heller, Maja Cemazar

Bioelectrics Publications

Several studies have shown that different control plasmids may cause antitumor action in different murine tumor models after gene electrotransfer (GET). Due to the differences in GET protocols, plasmid vectors, and experimental models, the observed antitumor effects were incomparable. Therefore, the current study was conducted comparing antitumor effectiveness of three different control plasmids using the same GET parameters. We followed cytotoxicity in vitro and the antitumor effect in vivo after GET of control plasmids pControl, pENTR/U6 scr and pVAX1 in B16.F10 murine melanoma cells and tumors. Types of cell death and upregulation of selected cytosolic DNA sensors and cytokines were …

Wnt Secretion Proteins Modulate Rankl-Induced Expression Of Aire In Thymic Epithelial Cells, Daniel Pollack

Dissertations and Theses

Thymic epithelial cells (TEC) are essential for a proper adaptive immune response by regulating thymocyte development and establishing central tolerance. In the thymus, TECs differentially express Wnt proteins, which activate canonical and non-canonical Wnt signaling pathways. Wnt signaling is thought to regulate cell survival, proliferation, and development although the direct molecular mechanisms in TECs have yet to be elucidated. The inducible inhibition of canonical Wnt signaling with Dkk1 leads to a rapid loss of TEC progenitors as well as a decline in mature Aire-expressing mTECs. Therefore, we explore the role of Wnt ligands potentially responsible for stimulating and/or regulating Wnt …

Evaluation And Adaptation Of Live-Cell Interferometry For Applications In Basic, Translational, And Clinical Research, Kevin A. Leslie

Theses and Dissertations

Cell mass is an important indicator of cell health and status. A diverse set of techniques have been developed to precisely measure the masses of single cells, with varying degrees of technical complexity and throughput. Here, the development of a non-invasive, label-free optical technique, termed Live-Cell Interferometry (LCI), is described. Several applications are presented, including an evaluation of LCI’s utility for assessing drug response heterogeneity in patient-derived melanoma lines and the measurement of CD3+ T cell kinetics during hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. The characterization of mast cells during degranulation, the measurement of viral reactivation kinetics in Kaposi’s Sarcoma, and drug …

Evaluation Of Extracellular Matrix Composition And Rheology As Determinants Of Growth, Invasion, And Response To Photodynamic Therapy In 3d Cell Culture Models Of Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma, Gwendolyn M. Cramer

Graduate Doctoral Dissertations

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is a notoriously lethal disease characterized by prominent stromal involvement, which plays complex roles in regulating tumor growth and therapeutic response. The extracellular matrix (ECM)-rich stroma has been implicated as a barrier to drug penetration, although stromal depletion strategies have had mixed clinical success. It remains less clear how biophysical interactions with the ECM regulate invasive progression and susceptibilities to specific therapies. Here, an integrative approach combining 3D cell culture and quantitative imaging techniques is used to evaluate invasive behavior and motility as determinants of response to classical chemotherapy and photodynamic therapy (PDT), in which light …

9-Aminoacridine Inhibits Ribosome Biogenesis And Synergizes With Cytotoxic Drugs To Induce Selective Killing Of P53-Deficient Cells, Leonid Anikin, Dimitri G Pestov

Rowan-Virtua School of Osteopathic Medicine Departmental Research

Common cancer treatments target rapidly dividing cells and do not discriminate between cancer and normal host cells. One approach to mitigating negative side‐effects of cancer treatment is to temporarily arrest cell cycle progression and thus protect normal cells during cytotoxic treatments, a concept called cyclotherapy. We recently proposed that transient inhibition of post‐transcriptional steps of ribosome biogenesis (RBG) can be used to selectively arrest p53‐positive host cells and not p53‐null cancer cells. In this study, we investigated whether cytoprotective RBG inhibition can be achieved through small molecule treatment.

Structural Insights Into The Potency Of Sk Channel Positive Modulators, Young-Woo Nam, Razan Orfali, Tingting Liu, Kunqian Yu, Meng Cui, Heike Wulff, Miao Zhang

Pharmacy Faculty Articles and Research

Small-conductance Ca2+-activated K+ (SK) channels play essential roles in the regulation of cellular excitability and have been implicated in neurological and cardiovascular diseases through both animal model studies and human genetic association studies. Over the past two decades, positive modulators of SK channels such as NS309 and 1-EBIO have been developed. Our previous structural studies have identified the binding pocket of 1-EBIO and NS309 that is located at the interface between the channel and calmodulin. In this study, we took advantage of four compounds with potencies varying over three orders of magnitude, including 1-EBIO, NS309, SKS-11 (6-bromo-5-methyl-1H-indole-2,3-dione-3-oxime) and …

Role Of Heat Shock Transcription Factor 1 In Ovarian Cancer Epithelial-Mesenchymal Transition And Drug Sensitivity, Chase David Powell

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The heat shock response (HSR) is a robust cellular reaction to mitigate protein damage from heat and other challenges to the proteome. This protective molecular program in humans is controlled by heat shock transcription factor 1 (HSF1). Activation of HSF1 leads to the induction of an array of cytoprotective genes, many of which code for chaperones. These chaperones, known as heat shock proteins (HSPs), are responsible for maintaining the functional integrity of the proteome. HSPs achieve this by promoting proper folding and assembly of nascent proteins, refolding denatured proteins, and processing for degradation proteins and aggregates which cannot be returned …

The Role Of Talin2 In Breast Cancer Tumorigenesis And Metastasis, Liqing Li, Xiang Li, Lei Qi, Piotr G. Rychahou, Naser Jafari, Cai Huang

Markey Cancer Center Faculty Publications

Recent studies show that talin2 has a higher affinity to β-integrin tails and is indispensable for traction force generation and cell invasion. However, its roles in cell migration, cancer cell metastasis and tumorigenesis remain to be determined. Here, we used MDA-MB-231 human breast cancer cells as a model to define the roles of talin2 in cell migration, invasion, metastasis and tumorigenesis. We show here that talin2 knockdown (KD) inhibited cell migration and focal adhesion dynamics, a key step in cell migration, and that talin2 knockout (KO) inhibited cell invasion and traction force generation, the latter is crucial for cell invasion. …

Chronic Hypobaric Hypoxia Modulates Primary Cilia Differently In Adult And Fetal Ovine Kidneys, Kiumars Shamloo, Juan Chen, Jasmine Sardar, Rinzhin T. Sherpa, Rajasekharreddy Pala, Kimberly F. Atkinson, William J. Pearce, Lubo Zhang, Surya M. Nauli

Pharmacy Faculty Articles and Research

Hypoxic environments at high altitude have significant effects on kidney injury. Following injury, renal primary cilia display length alterations. Primary cilia are mechanosensory organelles that regulate tubular architecture. The effect of hypoxia on cilia length is still controversial in cultured cells, and no corresponding in vivo study exists. Using fetal and adult sheep, we here study the effect of chronic hypobaric hypoxia on the renal injury, intracellular calcium signaling and the relationship between cilia length and cilia function. Our results show that although long-term hypoxia induces renal fibrosis in both fetal and adult kidneys, fetal kidneys are more susceptible to …

Characterization Of Different Molecular Markers For Identification Of Salmonella Enterica Serovar Typhi In Pakistani Population, Faizan Muttiullah, Fida Muhammad Khan, Fakhar-I- Abbas, Sabiha Shamim

Journal of Bioresource Management

Typhoid is caused by Salmonella enterica serovar Typhi that is usually diagnosed by using serologic and immuno-chromatographic techniques in developing counties including Pakistan, which is thought to be an unreliable diagnostic method. For accurate diagnosis we used molecular techniques to amplify 204 bp StyR-36 and 498 bp flagellin gene for the identification of Salmonella enterica serovar Typhi. This study was done on 58 individuals diagnosed positive of typhoid via serologic tests and 50 healthy individuals as a control group. Success rate of amplification for flagellin gene was 77.58% while that for StyR-36 gene was 68.97% showing that flagellin gene primer …

A Naturally Generated Decoy Of The Prostate Apoptosis Response-4 Protein Overcomes Therapy Resistance In Tumors, Nikhil Hebbar, Ravshan Burikhanov, Nidhi Shukla, Shirley Qiu, Yanming Zhao, Kojo S. J. Elenitoba-Johnson, Vivek M. Rangnekar

Radiation Medicine Faculty Publications

Primary tumors are often heterogeneous, composed of therapy-sensitive and emerging therapy-resistant cancer cells. Interestingly, treatment of therapy-sensitive tumors in heterogeneous tumor microenvironments results in apoptosis of therapy-resistant tumors. In this study, we identify a prostate apoptosis response-4 (Par-4) amino-terminal fragment (PAF) that is released by diverse therapy-sensitive cancer cells following therapy-induced caspase cleavage of the tumor suppressor Par-4 protein. PAF caused apoptosis in cancer cells resistant to therapy and inhibited tumor growth. A VASA segment of Par-4 mediated its binding and degradation by the ubiquitin ligase Fbxo45, resulting in loss of Par-4 proapoptotic function. Conversely, PAF, which contains this VASA …

Reversion Of Epithelial-Mesenchymal Transition By A Novel Agent Dz-50 Via Igf Binding Protein-3 In Prostate Cancer Cells, Zheng Cao, Shahriar Koochekpour, Stephen E. Strup, Natasha Kyprianou

Urology Faculty Publications

Dysregulation of transforming growth factor-β1 (TGF-β1) and insulin-like growth factor (IGF) axis has been linked to reactive stroma dynamics in prostate cancer progression. IGF binding protein-3 (IGFBP3) induction is initiated by stroma remodeling and could represent a potential therapeutic target for prostate cancer. In previous studies a lead quinazoline-based Doxazosin® derivative, DZ-50, impaired prostate tumor growth by targeting proteins involved in focal adhesion, anoikis resistance and epithelial-mesenchymal-transition (EMT). This study demonstrates that DZ-50 increased expression of the epithelial marker E-cadherin, and decreased the mesenchymal marker N-cadherin in human prostate cancer cells. In DU-145 cells, the effect of DZ-50 on EMT …

The Role Of Elevated Hyaluronan-Mediated Motility Receptor (Rhamm/Hmmr) In Ovarian Cancer, Stephanie T. Buttermore

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Ovarian cancer (OC) has the highest mortality among gynecological cancers. The high mortality is associated with the lack of an accurate screening tool to detect disease in early stage. As a result the majority of OCs are diagnosed in late stage. Further, the molecular events responsible for malignant transformation in the ovary remain poorly understood. Consequently, delineating key molecular players driving OC could help elucidate potential diagnostic, prognostic and therapeutic targets.

Receptor for hyaluronan-mediated motility (RHAMM) belongs to a group of hyaladherins, which share a common ability to bind to hyaluronan (HA). Intracellularly, RHAMM is involved in microtubule spindle assembly …

Abnormal Dendritic Maturation Of Developing Cortical Neurons Exposed To Corticotropin Releasing Hormone (Crh): Insights Into Effects Of Prenatal Adversity?, Megan M. Curran, Curt A. Sandman, Elysia Poggi Davis, Laura M. Glynn, Tallie Z. Baram

Psychology: Faculty Scholarship

Corticotropin releasing hormone (CRH) produced by the hypothalamus initiates the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis, which regulates the body’s stress response. CRH levels typically are undetectable in human plasma, but during pregnancy the primate placenta synthesizes and releases large amounts of CRH into both maternal and fetal circulations. Notably, placental CRH synthesis increases in response to maternal stress signals. There is evidence that human fetal exposure to high concentrations of placental CRH is associated with behavioral consequences during infancy and into childhood, however the direct effects on of the peptide on the human brain are unknown. In this study, we used a …

Functional Roles Of Matrix Metalloproteinases In Bone Metastatic Prostate Cancer, Jeremy S. Frieling

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Skeletal metastasis is a lethal component of many advanced cancers including prostate, the second most common cancer among men. Patients whose prostate cancer is localized and detected early benefit from multiple treatment options ranging from active surveillance to radiation and surgery, resulting in a 5-year survival rate of nearly 100%. Unfortunately, the prognosis and survival for patients with advanced metastatic disease is much worse due to the highly aggressive nature of the disease and a paucity of treatment options. Understanding the mechanisms and interactions that occur between metastatic cancer cells and the bone will enable the future treatment landscape for …

Paracrine Regulation Of Melanocyte Genomic Stability: A Focus On Nucleotide Excision Repair, Stuart Gordon Jarrett, Katharine Marie Carter, John August D'Orazio

Markey Cancer Center Faculty Publications

UV radiation is a major environmental risk factor for the development of melanoma by causing DNA damage and mutations. Resistance to UV damage is largely determined by the capacity of melanocytes to respond to UV injury by repairing mutagenic photolesions. The nucleotide excision repair (NER) pathway is the major mechanism by which cells correct UV photodamage. This multistep process involves the basic steps of damage recognition, isolation, localized strand unwinding, assembly of a repair complex, excision of the damage‐containing strand 3′ and 5′ to the photolesion, synthesis of a sequence‐appropriate replacement strand, and finally ligation to restore continuity of genomic …