Activation of protein P300 plays central role in DNA repair in hippocampal neurons

Various medications have been developed to treat neurodegenerative disorders, and drugs without significant side effects are gaining widespread interest such disorders. Brain Research Institute of Synergon Consulting in Romania, led by Dragoş C-rneci, found that the protein p300, which is a transcription co-activator required for consolidation of memories during specific learning tasks, is at the same time involved in DNA replication and repair, playing a central role in the long-patch pathway of base excision repair.

Based on the evidence, they propose that learning tasks such as novel object recognition could be tested as possible methods of base excision repair facilitation, hence inducing DNA repair in the hippocampal neurons. If this method proves to be effective, it could be the start for designing similar tasks for humans, as a behavioral therapeutic complement to the classical drug-based therapy in treating neurodegenerative disorders. These findings were published in the Neural Regeneration Research (Vol. 8, No. 32, 2013).