How DNA damage from paternal radiation exposure affects offspring

Research in the worm Caenorhabditis elegans reveals how DNA damage caused by paternal radiation exposure affects offspring, according to a study published in the journal Nature. The researchers found that radiation damage to mature sperm cannot be repaired, but is passed on to offspring. In contrast, female eggs either accurately repair the damage or, if the damage is too severe, are eliminated, with no damage passed on. However, when the egg is fertilized with radiation-damaged sperm, the egg provides maternal repair proteins that attempt to repair the paternal DNA. To do this, the body uses a very error-prone repair mechanism and randomly fuses the broken DNA segments. The random fusion of these breaks leads to structural changes in the paternal chromosomes. The resulting offspring now carry chromosomal damage, and their offspring, in turn, exhibit severe developmental defects.

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