Although the two B-family human DNA polymerases, pol δ and pol ε, are responsible for the bulk of nuclear genome replication, at least 14 additional polymerases have roles in nuclear DNA repair and replication. In this issue, newly reported crystal structures of two specialized A-family polymerases, pol ν and pol θ, expose these enzymes' strategies for handling aberrant DNA ends.
- William A Beard
- Samuel H Wilson