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New work shows that in mammals, the iDDR motif of telomere factor TRF2 inhibits the MRE11–RAD50–NBS1 (MRN) complex at chromosome ends through a direct iDDR–RAD50 interaction. Unrelated protein motifs in yeasts inhibit MRN functions via an analogous mechanism, suggesting a convergent evolution in eukaryotes to control MRN action at telomeres.

Recent findings indicate that heterochromatin serves as a molecular sink for factors involved in chromatin-mediated repression of gene expression; long-range interactions that position a euchromatic gene near a heterochromatin domain influence its susceptibility to transcriptional silencing.