[The structures at the termini of chromosomes: what is there hidden under the cap ?].
The telomeres are the nucleoproteic structures present at the ends of eukaryotic chromosomes. One can compare them to the protective ends of a shoelace; when the ends get eroded, the shoelace disintegrates and we dispose of it. The same thus applies to the chromosomes; when telomeres reach a critical threshold for function, the genome becomes unstable and the cell senesces. Therefore, telomeres, and particularly their terminal DNA structures, are critical for the integrity of the genome.
Département de microbiologie et d'infectiologie, Faculté de médecine, Université de Sherbrooke, 3001, 12e Avenue Nord, Sherbrooke, Québec, J1H 5N4, Canada.
Catherine
C
LeBel
Raymund J
RJ
Wellinger
D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D002875:Chromosomes / Q000648:ultrastructure; D004247:DNA / Q000648:ultrastructure; D006801:Humans; D016615:Telomere / Q000502:physiology / Q000648:ultrastructure*
D004247:DNA