Danish researchers have discovered a previously unknown function in histones -- responsible for packaging the DNA into structural units -- that will help improve understanding of how cells protect and repair DNA damage. ‘I believe that there's a lot of work ahead. It's like opening a door onto a previously undiscovered territory filled with lots of exciting knowledge. The histones are incredibly important to many of the cells' processes as well as their overall well-being’ said study author Niels Mailand from the University of Copenhagen's Novo Nordisk Foundation Centre for Protein Research. This new discovery may be of great importance