On Aug. 15, 2024, researcher from from Western University announced they had discovered a protein that has the never-before-seen ability to stop DNA damage in its tracks.

The researchers found the protein—called DdrC (for DNA Damage Repair Protein C)—in a fairly common bacterium called Deinococcus radiodurans (D. radiodurans), which has the uncommon ability to survive conditions that damage DNA—for example, 5,000 to 10,000 times the radiation that would kill a regular human cell. The finding has potential for developing everything from vaccines against cancer, to crops that can withstand the increasingly harsh growing conditions.