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Updated: Jun 8, 2026
12:08
Telomere Length and Telomerase Activity; A Yin and Yang of Cell Senescence
Published on: May 22, 2013
[Telomeres and telomerase].
1Dansk Center for Aldringsforskning (DARC), Denmark. laila.bendix@slb.regionsyddanmark.dk
Ugeskrift for Laeger
|October 8, 2010
Summary
Nobel Prize winners discovered how telomeres and telomerase protect chromosomes. Telomeres act as a cellular clock, shortening with division, while telomerase can lengthen them, potentially guarding against cancer and aging.
Area of Science:
- Genetics and Molecular Biology
- Cell Biology
- Biochemistry
Background:
- Telomeres are protective DNA structures at chromosome ends.
- Telomeres shorten with each cell division, acting as a cellular clock.
- The enzyme telomerase can elongate telomeres.
Observation:
- Telomeres prevent chromosome ends from being recognized as DNA breaks.
- The Nobel Prize in Medicine 2009 recognized key research in this area.
- Telomere length is linked to cellular aging and disease.
Findings:
- Telomeres safeguard chromosome integrity.
- Telomerase activity counteracts telomere shortening.
- This mechanism is crucial for cellular stability and longevity.
Implications:
- Understanding telomeres and telomerase offers insights into cancer prevention.
- Telomere biology may hold keys to understanding aging and age-related diseases.
- Further research could lead to novel therapeutic strategies targeting telomere maintenance.
Related Concept Videos
02:41Telomeres and Telomerase
In eukaryotic DNA replication, a single-stranded DNA fragment remains at the end of a chromosome after the removal of the final primer. This section of DNA cannot be replicated in the same manner as the rest of the strand because there is no 3’ end to which the newly synthesized DNA can attach. This non-replicated fragment results in gradual loss of the chromosomal DNA during each cell duplication. Additionally, it can induce a DNA damage response by enzymes that recognize single-stranded DNA.
02:41Telomeres and Telomerase
In eukaryotic DNA replication, a single-stranded DNA fragment remains at the end of a chromosome after the removal of the final primer. This section of DNA cannot be replicated in the same manner as the rest of the strand because there is no 3’ end to which the newly synthesized DNA can attach. This non-replicated fragment results in gradual loss of the chromosomal DNA during each cell duplication. Additionally, it can induce a DNA damage response by enzymes that recognize single-stranded DNA.
01:29Replication in Eukaryotes
In eukaryotic cells, DNA replication is highly conserved and tightly regulated. Multiple linear chromosomes must be duplicated with high fidelity before cell division, so there are many proteins that fulfill specialized roles in the replication process. Replication occurs in three phases: initiation, elongation, and termination, and ends with two complete sets of chromosomes in the nucleus.
Many Proteins Orchestrate Replication at the Origin
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02:31Replication in Eukaryotes
Overview
02:15Replicative Cell Senescence
Replicative cell senescence is a property of cells that allows them to divide a finite number of times throughout the organism's lifespan while preventing excessive proliferation. Replicative senescence is associated with the gradual loss of the telomere — short, repetitive DNA sequences found at the end of the chromosomes. Telomeres are bound by a group of proteins to form a protective cap on the ends of chromosomes. Embryonic stem cells express telomerase — an enzyme that adds the telomeric...
02:31Chromosome Replication
Before a cell can divide, it must accurately replicate all of its chromosomes, including the DNA and its associated histone and non-histone proteins. This process begins at numerous origins of replication during the S phase of the cell cycle in each of a cell’s chromosomes simultaneously. Certain nucleotides can act as origins of replication, but these sequences are not well defined - especially in complex, multi-cellular, eukaryotic species. The length of DNA that spans an origin of...