Cancer cells are characterized by chromosome instability. For example, cancer cells invariably exhibit structural (e.g. chromosome rearrangements) and numerical (e.g. extra copies of chromosomes) chromosome changes. These chromosome changes arise as a consequence of a failure to appropriately sense and repair damaged DNA. The primary focus of the Howlett laboratory is the eukaryotic DNA damage response and how defects in this process lead to cancer. More specifically, we study the molecular origins of the rare genetic cancer susceptibility syndrome Fanconi anemia (FA). Over the course of the summer, students will use biochemical and genetic approaches to study the regulation and function of the FA proteins in the cellular DNA damage response.