Nucleotide excision repair (NER) is a major conserved DNA repair pathway, which repairs various types of damage in the genome, such as those induced by ultraviolet light and environmental agents. Dysfunction in this pathway can be detrimental to human health. For example, individuals with defects in NER suffer from xeroderma pigmentosum, a disease characterized by an extreme disposition to sunlight-induced skin cancer due to an inability to repair UV-damaged DNA.