DNA topoisomerases alleviate the torsional stress that is generated by processes that are
central to genome metabolism such as transcription and DNA replication. To do so, these
enzymes generate an enzyme intermediate known as the cleavage complex in which the
topoisomerase is covalently linked to the termini of a DNA single-or double-strand break.
Whilst cleavage complexes are normally transient they can occasionally become abortive,
creating protein-linked DNA breaks that threaten genome stability and cell survival; a …