A tale of ends

Article Abstract:

It has been possible to develop an elegant screen for nematode worm Caenorhabditis elegans mutants with mortal germ lines. Mortal germline-2, the first gene to be characterized from this research, is needed for both telomere replication and for monitoring damaged DNA. This gene is the C.elegans homologue of a checkpoint gene, conserved from yeast to humans, that is involved in the response to DNA damage. This research challenges the idea that telomeres and double-strand breaks are functionally distinct termini.

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Different means to common ends

Article Abstract:

Telomeres ensure the complete replication of chromosome ends while protecting the ends from fusion or degradation. A repeat-binding protein from the yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe and the analogous human factor have been found to block the elongation of telomeres. New data suggest that the mechanisms of telomere length regulation are highly conserved. and provide good insights on the relationship between telomere length and both ageing and cancer.

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Defects in mismatch repair promote telomerase-independent proliferation

Article Abstract:

Mismatch repair plays an important part in the maintenance of genomic stability through the repair of DNA replication errors and inhibition of recombination between homeologous sequences. Research into defects in mismatch repair is presented.

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