Description | Jesper Svejstrup has used biochemistry, genetics, and molecular biology to elucidate basic mechanisms at the interface of transcription, chromatin, and genome integrity. His focus has been on the discovery and characterisation of important biochemical pathways that are activated by obstacles to transcription, such as DNA damage and nucleosomes. As a post-doctoral fellow, Svejstrup found that the general transcription factor TFIIH is also required for DNA repair. As an independent scientist, he showed that RNA polymerase II becomes ubiquitylated and degraded - as a last resort - when obstacles to transcription cannot be overcome, and that this is crucial to maintain transcription and genome integrity. He also clarified how RNA polymerase II manages to clear promoters and transcribe through chromatin. Svejstrup s work has led to a deeper understanding of gene transcription and its interface with other DNA-related processes, such as DNA replication, recombination, and repair. It is also of great importance for the understanding of certain inherited human diseases, such as xeroderma pigmentosum, Cockayne s syndrome, and familial dysautonomia. |