The Holliday junction resolvase GEN1 preserves genome integrity and self-renewal in mouse embryonic stem cells

The maintenance of pluripotent stem cells (PSCs) under rapid proliferation requires mechanisms that both suppress replication-driven genome instability and preserve self-renewal capacity. Here, we show that, in contrast to somatic cells where it mainly acts as a backup, the Holliday junction resolvase GEN1 is required in mouse embryonic stem cells (ESCs), where its depletion severely compromises self-renewal and long-term maintenance. Loss of GEN1 induces the accumulation of cells with DNA content greater than 4C and chromosome fusions. Notably, a catalytically inactive GEN1 mutant rescues ESC colony formation, indicating that GEN1 supports ESC maintenance through non-enzymatic functions. In addition, GEN1 depletion increases ESC tolerance to topoisomerase I-mediated replication stress and renders this phenotype dependent on DNA-PK activity, suggesting that GEN1 loss alters how pluripotent cells cope with replication-associated DNA lesions. Together, these findings identify GEN1 as a non-redundant guardian of genome integrity in pluripotent cells, revealing both a catalysis-independent role in self-renewal and a contribution to the replication stress response, with implications for PSC genomic quality control.