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The high frequency of DNA damage necessitates effective repair mechanisms. Evidence is mounting that RNA plays an important role in DNA repair. Distinguished Research Fellow Woan-Yuh Tarn in the Institute of Biomedical Sciences, Academia Sinica found that the long non-coding RNA HOTAIRM1 brings mRNA surveillance factors to the DNA damage sites, which degrade the transcripts induced by double-strand breaks. Such RNA clearance facilitates the turnover of DNA repair and hence increases the efficiency of DNA repair. Meanwhile, Tarn’s group found that co-phase separation between non-coding RNA and RNA binding protein Y14 may contribute to the repair of DNA damage. These studies have been published in Nucleic Acids Research and RNA, respectively.