A 1994 issue of the journal Science largely focused on the cell’s system for repairing continuous damage to DNA. The enzymes that handle DNA repair were named Molecule of the Year. Aziz Sancar and Paul Modrich were among the scientists noted in the journal, and they also contributed articles.
Aziz Sancar donated the journal issue to the Nobel Prize Museum in 2015.
Using this model, Aziz Sancar illustrates how our cells repair damage to their DNA molecules. It was built in 1986 and shows at the red mark how UV radiation has caused two base pairs of the DNA double helix to join together. Bacteria and humans have molecules – repair enzymes – that sense damage and remove strings of 12 or 27 half-base pairs around the damage. The model indicates the boundaries of these areas with the yellow and green markers. The double spiral's remaining strand then acts as a template to recreate the damaged strand.
Aziz Sancar donated the model to the Nobel Prize Museum in 2015.
