The Crossroads of Ubiquitination and DNA Repair: A Structural Perspective

The timely repair of DNA damage is crucial to the maintenance of genome integrity. The DNA damage response relies on the cross talk between a large number of protein complexes and is subject to regulation by posttranslational modifications. Ubiquitination has emerged as an integral part of several DNA repair and damage-signaling responses. This posttranslational modification not only targets proteins for degradation by the proteasome but also has important regulatory roles. Here, we review our current understanding of selected DNA repair pathways influenced by ubiquitination, with a special focus on protein structure and architecture.