title: Wild-derived inbred mouse strains have short telomeres.
abstract: Telomere length and telomerase activity directly affect the replicative capacity of primary human cells. Some have suggested that telomere length influences organismal lifespan. We compared telomere length distributions in a number of inbred and outbred established mouse strains with those of strains recently derived from wild mice. Telomere length was considerably shorter in wild-derived strains than in the established strains. We found no correlation of telomere length with lifespan, even among closely related inbred mouse strains. Thus, while telomere length plays a role in cellular lifespan in cultured human cells, it is not a major factor in determining organismal lifespan.
authors.affiliation: Predoctoral Training Program in Human Genetics and Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA.
authors.forename: M T
authors.initials: MT
authors.lastname: Hemann
authors.forename: C W
authors.initials: CW
authors.lastname: Greider
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D004247:DNA / Q000235:genetics; D016521:Electrophoresis, Gel, Pulsed-Field; D017404:In Situ Hybridization, Fluorescence; D051379:Mice; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL; D008815:Mice, Inbred Strains; D009115:Muridae; D013154:Spleen / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism; D016615:Telomere / Q000235:genetics*
chemical_list: D004247:DNA