DNA Replication-Current Advances

0364291 - BC 2012 RIV HR eng M - Monography Chapter
Mason, J. M. - Reddy, H. M. - Čapková Frydrychová, Radmila
Telomore maintenance on organisms without telomerase.
DNA Replication-Current Advances. Rijeka: InTech, 2011 - (Seligmann, H.), s. 323-346. ISBN 978-953-307-593-8
Grant - others:EU program FP7-REGPOT-2008-1(CZ) MOBITAG project 229518
Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z50070508
Keywords : telomere
Subject RIV: EB - Genetics ; Molecular Biology

Most eukaryotes elongate chromosome ends with telomerase that repeatedly adds copies of the short telomeric DNA sequence to the chromosome end. While there is strict conservation of telomeric sequence repeat in most species, the repeat unit has changed over evolutionary time. Lack of the predominant telomeric sequence in a species does not, however, signify that telomerase-generated terminal sequences are missing. Conversely, the presence of a canonical telomeric sequence does not necessarily indicate telomerase as a telomere maintenance mechanism. Although telomerase may have been the mechanism of telomere maintenance of the last common eukaryotic ancestor, it is not the only mechanism used to maintain chromosome length. Telomerase has been lost a few times in the evolution of plants and animals. During insect evolution, for example, telomerase has been lost at least six times. Here, we discuss telomere maintenance mechanisms that replaced telomerase in telomere length maintenance.
Permanent Link: http://hdl.handle.net/11104/0199812