Labroots’ virtual events are designed to spark impactful scientific discussions while connecting with individuals worldwide who are either in your field of study or have similar scientific interests. These virtual events proudly host a poster discussion hour where attendees can discuss their pre-submitted posters with a worldwide audience and answer questions about their research. This year’s Drug Discovery & Development Virtual Event (now available On Demand) highlighted an exceptional study involving premature aging disorders and heterochromatin content. This astounding study comes from Dr. Jong-Hyuk Lee, who is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Biomedical Sciences at the Mercer University School of Medicine.
Dr. Lee’s poster investigated a connection between heterochromatin content and DNA damage vulnerability in two known aging disorders, Xeroderma Pigmentosum (XPA) and Ataxia-Telangiectasia (ATM), with XPA preventing DNA repair from ultraviolet (UV) radiation and ATM resulting in a wider range of DNA damage, including impaired coordination and blood vessel deformities in the eyes and skin. While heterochromatin is naturally lost as we age, its breakdown has been found to contribute to a variety of aging disorders.
For the study, the researchers subjected XPA and ATM cells to oxidative stress with the goal of identifying how this influences heterochromatin content within the XPA and ATM cells. While they hypothesized oxidative stress would lead to a reduction in heterochromatin content, the team discovered the opposite occurred as the oxidative stress increased heterochromatin content.
Further results showed the stress-induced XPA and ATM cells exhibited increased levels of H3K9me3, which is a DNA packing protein alteration resulting from a range of environmental or behavioral factors, resulting in decreased DNA damage. They also identified increased levels of chromatin poly(ADP-ribosyl)ation (PARylation), which is involved in DNA repair, indicating the stress-induced XPA and ATM cells experienced increased levels of DNA damage. In the future, the team aspires to dive deeper into the processes responsible for this behavior.
Regarding how he thinks this project contributes to the larger ongoing themes in the field of drug discovery & development, Dr. Lee tells Labroots, “In the field of molecular gerontology, nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD⁺) supplementation has garnered significant attention from researchers. NAD⁺ is a crucial coenzyme involved in key cellular processes, including energy metabolism, mitochondrial function, and DNA repair. Studies have shown that intracellular NAD⁺ levels decline significantly with age, contributing to mitochondrial dysfunction, metabolic decline, and impaired cellular repair mechanisms.”
Dr. Lee is actively seeing a graduate student to join his lab, located at the picturesque Mercer University School of Medicine Savannah Campus. To follow Dr. Lee’s research and career and to connect with him, please check out his Mercer University profile and LinkedIn page.