“Challenge to Conquer Cancer—New Trends in Mutation Research” JEMS Open Symposium 2011

Conquering cancer is one of the most crucial missions for researchers of environmental mutagenesis and carcinogenesis. One effective approach to understanding carcinogenesis involves elucidating how mutations are fixed from DNA lesions induced by environmental mutagens and carcinogens and how DNA polymerases and intracellular functions related to these polymerases are involved in the mutation fixation. These are rather old-fashioned but still critical questions that should be clarified. Recent analyses using novel molecular biology and genome epidemiology techniques could be powerful weapons to make open this “black box.” Seven scientists who were working to elucidate the molecular mechanisms for environmental mutagenesis and carcinogenesis were invited to the Public Symposium of the Japanese Environmental Mutagen Society (JEMS) held on May 28, 2011; they discussed the aims of mutation research in the next generation to conquer cancer.