Role of mitochondria in nuclear DNA damage response

DNA damage response (DDR) is an intracellular pathway that senses and repairs damaged DNA. Proper regulation of this pathway is essential for maintaining genome stability and promoting cell survival. These repair mechanisms are regulated by multiple nuclear DNA damage repair enzymes, which can scan the DNA for problems and restore the DNA double helix structure. In addition to DDR-involved proteins located in cell nuclei, mitochondrial molecular machinery also coordinate this role; the mitochondria sense fluctuations in specific DNA damage signaling and subsequently activate the effector molecules and appropriate pathway. In this review, we summarized the latest scientific literature regarding molecular mechanisms of mitochondria-mediated stress responses in DNA damage signaling. Additionally, we have described future directions necessary for a comprehensive understanding of mitochondria-DDR signaling networks.