[4][5][6] SMUG1 is a glycosylase that removes uracil from single- and double-stranded DNA in nuclear chromatin, thus contributing to base excision repair.

[14] Low SMUG1 transcripts can impair DNA repair and thus increase mutation rate, enhance chromosomal instability and promote selection of more malignant clones with aggressive behavior.

[15] In addition low SMUG1 transcripts were shown to be potentially correlated with poor survival and linked to aggressive phenotype in breast cancer.

One possible explanation is that in gastric cancer inflammation is the driver for carcinogenesis and low concentrations of SMUG1 can be beneficial in repairing oxidative base damage (commonly seen in inflammatory environment).

It was suggested that SMUG1 can be potentially used as a predictive biomarkers of drug response and a mechanism for acquired resistance in certain types of tumors.

Investigation of SMUG1 expression in gastric cancers showed that overexpressed SMUG1 was correlated with patients’ poor survival.