Rekha Rai, PhD
Research Scientist in Laboratory Medicine
Research & Publications
Biography
Research Summary
My research program seeks to understand how telomeres are protected from end-to-end chromosome fusions, homologous recombination or unregulated nucleolytic degradation in cancer.
Coauthors
Selected Publications
- NBS1 Phosphorylation Status Dictates Repair Choice of Dysfunctional Telomeres.Rai R, Hu C, Broton C, Chen Y, Lei M, Chang S. NBS1 Phosphorylation Status Dictates Repair Choice of Dysfunctional Telomeres. Molecular Cell 2017, 65: 801-817.e4. PMID: 28216226, PMCID: PMC5639704, DOI: 10.1016/j.molcel.2017.01.016.
- TRF2-RAP1 is required to protect telomeres from engaging in homologous recombination-mediated deletions and fusions.Rai R, Chen Y, Lei M, Chang S. TRF2-RAP1 is required to protect telomeres from engaging in homologous recombination-mediated deletions and fusions. Nature Communications 2016, 7: 10881. PMID: 26941064, PMCID: PMC4785230, DOI: 10.1038/ncomms10881.
- A conserved motif within RAP1 has diversified roles in telomere protection and regulation in different organisms.Chen Y, Rai R, Zhou ZR, Kanoh J, Ribeyre C, Yang Y, Zheng H, Damay P, Wang F, Tsujii H, Hiraoka Y, Shore D, Hu HY, Chang S, Lei M. A conserved motif within RAP1 has diversified roles in telomere protection and regulation in different organisms. Nature Structural & Molecular Biology 2011, 18: 213-21. PMID: 21217703, PMCID: PMC3688267, DOI: 10.1038/nsmb.1974.
- Differential regulation of centrosome integrity by DNA damage response proteins.Rai R, Phadnis A, Haralkar S, Badwe RA, Dai H, Li K, Lin SY. Differential regulation of centrosome integrity by DNA damage response proteins. Cell Cycle (Georgetown, Tex.) 2008, 7: 2225-33. PMID: 18635967, PMCID: PMC2557875, DOI: 10.4161/cc.7.14.6303.
- The Replisome Mediates A-NHEJ Repair of Telomeres Lacking POT1-TPP1 Independently of MRN Function.Rai R, Gu P, Broton C, Kumar-Sinha C, Chen Y, Chang S. The Replisome Mediates A-NHEJ Repair of Telomeres Lacking POT1-TPP1 Independently of MRN Function. Cell Reports 2019, 29: 3708-3725.e5. PMID: 31825846, PMCID: PMC7001145, DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2019.11.012.
- Molecular cloning, isolation and characterisation of ERK3 gene from chewing-tobacco induced oral squamous cell carcinoma.Rai R, Mahale A, Saranath D. Molecular cloning, isolation and characterisation of ERK3 gene from chewing-tobacco induced oral squamous cell carcinoma. Oral Oncology 2004, 40: 705-12. PMID: 15172640, DOI: 10.1016/j.oraloncology.2004.01.010.
- Genome wide instability scanning in chewing-tobacco associated oral cancer using inter simple sequence repeat PCR.Rai R, Kulkarni V, Saranath D. Genome wide instability scanning in chewing-tobacco associated oral cancer using inter simple sequence repeat PCR. Oral Oncology 2004, 40: 1033-9. PMID: 15509495, DOI: 10.1016/j.oraloncology.2004.05.009.
- Microcephalin 1/BRIT1-TRF2 interaction promotes telomere replication and repair, linking telomere dysfunction to primary microcephaly.Cicconi A, Rai R, Xiong X, Broton C, Al-Hiyasat A, Hu C, Dong S, Sun W, Garbarino J, Bindra RS, Schildkraut C, Chen Y, Chang S. Microcephalin 1/BRIT1-TRF2 interaction promotes telomere replication and repair, linking telomere dysfunction to primary microcephaly. Nature Communications 2020, 11: 5861. PMID: 33203878, PMCID: PMC7672075, DOI: 10.1038/s41467-020-19674-0.
- Probing the telomere damage response.Rai R, Chang S. Probing the telomere damage response. Methods In Molecular Biology (Clifton, N.J.) 2011, 735: 145-50. PMID: 21461819, PMCID: PMC3690558, DOI: 10.1007/978-1-61779-092-8_14.
- BRIT1/MCPH1 is a DNA damage responsive protein that regulates the Brca1-Chk1 pathway, implicating checkpoint dysfunction in microcephaly.Lin SY, Rai R, Li K, Xu ZX, Elledge SJ. BRIT1/MCPH1 is a DNA damage responsive protein that regulates the Brca1-Chk1 pathway, implicating checkpoint dysfunction in microcephaly. Proceedings Of The National Academy Of Sciences Of The United States Of America 2005, 102: 15105-9. PMID: 16217032, PMCID: PMC1257745, DOI: 10.1073/pnas.0507722102.
- BRIT1/MCPH1: a guardian of genome and an enemy of tumors.Chaplet M, Rai R, Jackson-Bernitsas D, Li K, Lin SY. BRIT1/MCPH1: a guardian of genome and an enemy of tumors. Cell Cycle (Georgetown, Tex.) 2006, 5: 2579-83. PMID: 17172830, DOI: 10.4161/cc.5.22.3471.
- DNA damage response: the players, the network and the role in tumor suppression.Rai R, Peng G, Li K, Lin SY. DNA damage response: the players, the network and the role in tumor suppression. Cancer Genomics & Proteomics 2007, 4: 99-106. PMID: 17804872.