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Updated: Jun 2, 2026

Generation of Cancer Cell Clones to Visualize Telomeric Repeat-containing RNA TERRA Expressed from a Single Telomere in Living Cells
Published on: January 17, 2019
Subtelomeric repetitive elements determine TERRA regulation by Rap1/Rif and Rap1/Sir complexes in yeast
Nahid Iglesias1, Sophie Redon, Verena Pfeiffer
1Swiss Institute for Experimental Cancer Research (ISREC), School of Life Sciences, Frontiers in Genetics National Center of Competence in Research, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Station 19, Lausanne 1015, Switzerland.
Abstract:
Telomeric repeat-containing RNA (TERRA) has been implicated in the control of heterochromatin and telomerase. We demonstrate that yeast TERRA is regulated by telomere-binding proteins in a chromosome-end-specific manner that is dependent on subtelomeric repetitive DNA elements. At telomeres that contain only X-elements, the Rap1 carboxy-terminal domain recruits the Sir2/3/4 and Rif1/2 complexes to repress transcription in addition to promoting Rat1-nuclease-dependent TERRA degradation. At telomeres that contain Y' elements, however, Rap1 represses TERRA through recruitment of Rif1 and Rif2. Our work emphasizes the importance of subtelomeric DNA in the control of telomeric protein composition and telomere transcription.
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