Discovering and targeting repeat expansions in human disease

Expansion of a single repetitive DNA sequence, termed a tandem repeat (TR), is known to cause more than 50 diseases. However, repeat expansions are often not explored beyond neurological and neurodegenerative disorders. Here, I will discuss efforts to identify and target repeat expansions in human disease, with a focus on neurodegenerative disease and cancer. Contact Greg Crawford (greg.crawford at duke dot edu) and Debby Silver (debra.silver at duke dot edu) with any questions.