Saturday, March 26, 2011

Think About Summer Sun…Now, Think Of No Damage From The Sun

sundamageTwo things about this sentence stand out. One, it’s March and it’s still cold, and two, too much such can cause damage to the skin. Well, it being March is true, but sun damage may become a thing of the past.

It turns out humans lack a key enzyme found in many animals and plants that reverses severe sun damage. Research published in Nature reported that scientists were able to observe the enzyme photolyase inject a single electron and proton into an injured strand of DNA.

These subatomic particles healed the damage in a fraction of a second. After the repair is done the electron and the proton are automatically ejected out of the DNA and back into the photolyase enzyme so it’s ready to use again.

For readers who are old enough to remember it, the statement comes to mind of…”who was that masked man” or in this case…”what was that enzyme.”

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