TY - JOUR
T1 - Telomeres and DNA double-strand breaks
T2 - Ever the twain shall meet?
AU - Bailey, S. M.
AU - Cornforth, M. N.
N1 - Funding Information:
Pemba for their logistical support. We also appreciate the technical assistance of Nassor Rasl'iid and Yahya Suleiman during fieldwork on Pemba and Tatu Seif Ali and Tatu Slim for stemborer rearing. We would like to thank the farmers for their cooperation and permission to use their fields. Parasitoid identification services provided by Susan Kimani-Njogu and Tom Ondiek (Braconidae, Chalcididae and Eulophidae), Y. Jongema (Elasmidae and Braconidae) and K.W.R. Zwart (Ichneumonidae) are hereby acknowledged. The financial assistance for this work was obtained from DGIS-supported stemborer control project at ICIPE and the Netherlands Foundation for Tropical Science (WOTRO) project.
PY - 2007/11
Y1 - 2007/11
N2 - Telomeres were first recognized as a bona fide constituent of the chromosome based on their inability to rejoin with broken chromosome ends produced by radiation. Today, we recognize two essential and interrelated properties of telomeres. They circumvent the so-called end-replication problem faced by genomes composed of linear chromosomes, which erode from their termini with each successive cell division. Equally vital is the end-capping function that telomeres provide, which is necessary to deter chromosome ends from illicit recombination. This latter property is critical in facilitating the distinction between the naturally occurring DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs) found at chromosome ends (i.e., telomeres) and DSBs produced by exogenous agents. Here we discuss, in a brief historical narrative, key discoveries that led investigators to appreciate the unique properties of telomeres in protecting chromosome ends, and the consequences of telomere dysfunction, particularly as related to recombination involving radiation-induced DSBs.
AB - Telomeres were first recognized as a bona fide constituent of the chromosome based on their inability to rejoin with broken chromosome ends produced by radiation. Today, we recognize two essential and interrelated properties of telomeres. They circumvent the so-called end-replication problem faced by genomes composed of linear chromosomes, which erode from their termini with each successive cell division. Equally vital is the end-capping function that telomeres provide, which is necessary to deter chromosome ends from illicit recombination. This latter property is critical in facilitating the distinction between the naturally occurring DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs) found at chromosome ends (i.e., telomeres) and DSBs produced by exogenous agents. Here we discuss, in a brief historical narrative, key discoveries that led investigators to appreciate the unique properties of telomeres in protecting chromosome ends, and the consequences of telomere dysfunction, particularly as related to recombination involving radiation-induced DSBs.
KW - DNA repair
KW - Double-strand breaks
KW - Ionizing radiation
KW - Telomeres
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U2 - 10.1007/s00018-007-7242-4
DO - 10.1007/s00018-007-7242-4
M3 - Review article
C2 - 17876526
AN - SCOPUS:38549118450
SN - 1420-682X
VL - 64
SP - 2956
EP - 2964
JO - Cellular and Molecular Life Sciences
JF - Cellular and Molecular Life Sciences
IS - 22
ER -