Thymidine glycol: the effect on DNA molecular structure and enzymatic processing

► Thymidine glycol is a biologically active oxidative lesion in DNA and affects biochemical processing of DNA. ► Due to chirality of C5 and C6 atoms, thymidine glycol exists as a mixture of two pairs of cis- and trans-diastereomers. ► Thymidine glycol represents a strong block to high-fidelity DNA polymerases in vitro and is lethal in vivo. ► Thymidine glycol is often found in tandem (clustered) lesions.