title: Population mixture model for nonlinear telomere dynamics.
abstract: Telomeres are DNA repeats protecting chromosomal ends which shorten with each cell division, eventually leading to cessation of cell growth. We present a population mixture model that predicts an exponential decrease in telomere length with time. We analytically solve the dynamics of the telomere length distribution. The model provides an excellent fit to available telomere data and accounts for the previously unexplained observation of telomere elongation following stress and bone marrow transplantation, thereby providing insight into the nature of the telomere clock.
authors.affiliation: Department of Computer Science and Applied Mathematics, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel.
authors.forename: Shalev
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Itzkovitz
authors.forename: Liran I
authors.initials: LI
authors.lastname: Shlush
authors.forename: Dan
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Gluck
authors.forename: Karl
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Skorecki
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D055592:Biophysical Phenomena; D016923:Cell Death / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology; D002455:Cell Division / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology; D016922:Cellular Senescence / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology; D008954:Models, Biological; D017711:Nonlinear Dynamics; D016615:Telomere / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*