Damon Runyon Researchers

Dr. Stinson focuses on a cellular DNA repair process called non-homologous end joining (NHEJ), which repairs most DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs) in vertebrates. Failure to repair DSBs properly can lead to new mutations, which are a central feature of cancer initiation and progression. Dr. Stinson has discovered one way the NHEJ machinery modifies DNA at DSBs and minimizes errors when re-joining broken ends of the DNA molecule. He will further investigate the basic mechanisms of the two main DSB repair pathways, which are critical to understanding the causes of many cancers and informing therapeutic approaches.