Successful DNA detective work: Professor Thomas Carell...
Our cells are exposed to dangers everywhere: pollutants in the air are just as hazardous as extended sunbathing. Every day, the building blocks of our body suffer between 50,000 and 100,000 lesions. The amazing double helix that is our DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) requires continuous repair. This work is carried out by special enzymes - a kind of nanosized assembly system.
Basis for new therapeutic approaches
Thomas Carell, professor of chemistry at the Ludwig Maximilian University in Munich, conducts research into DNA damage and its repair. He has succeeded in stabilizing highly unstable repair sections and elucidating the mechanisms. His work could form the basis for new therapeutic approaches in cancer research. In recognition of this achievement, Professor Carell received the 2008 Otto Bayer Prize. Read more about his research in the nanocosmos of DNA strands here.