• Question: Can you tell me the name again of the endings of a ..... (sorry, dont remember what it was called). It was illustrated in the lecture about Ageing as a large piece of thick rope with plastic cup-like endings. The rope's length was not to scale as it would have had to stretch across the world had it been so. Hubby and I just cant remember the name of the endings on this structure. Thank you

    Asked by margaretturner to Rachael, Penny, Jennifer, Jean-Paul, David, Andrew, Alison on 6 Jan 2014. This question was also asked by kattypuss.
    • Photo: David Bowkett

      David Bowkett answered on 6 Jan 2014:

      The word you’re looking for is “Telomere”.

    • Photo: Rachael Inglis

      Rachael Inglis answered on 6 Jan 2014:

      Yep, the telomeres are the protective caps on the ends of our chromosomes! Every time our cells divide, the telomeres get a little bit shorter because our DNA replication machinery isn’t very good at getting all the way to the end of the chromosome, but it’s okay to lose little bits off the ends of the telomeres because they are just long stretches of DNA that don’t contain any information. They are so important because they protect the part of the chromosome that does contain information: the genes and the DNA sequences that control whether the genes are active or not.

      Also, watch the RI advent calendar video on chromosome 5 to find out more about how your cells keep your telomeres nice and long for longer!

    • Photo: Penelope Mason

      Penelope Mason answered on 7 Jan 2014:

      Yes, have a look at Lynne’s segment on day five of the chromosome advent if you haven’t already done so – I think it’s pretty clear. Also, for all those still wondering what the ‘sock puppet’ is masquerading as telomerase, it’s a silicone oven glove : )

Comments