Biology - 3 Answers
Random Answers, Critics, Comments, Opinions :
1 :
Telomerases normally tack on extra "junk DNA" sequence to the end of the chromosome, so no important DNA sequences get chopped off during replication. Telomerase activity is usually higher when you're younger, and tends to decline as you age. Cancerous agents can reactivate telomerase for the purpose of immortalizing cancer cells. The addition of this 'junk' DNA to the telomeres allows the cells to continually proliferate at fairly high rates. So, research into telomeres, and how to keep cancer cells from reactivating the telomerases could lead to the ability to stop/slow proliferation of cancerous cells
2 :
Telomeres are the ends of chromosomes that are very repetitive, and seem to serve no real purpose, except for one: a cell with very short telomeres gets terminated, imploding through apoptosis. When cells divide, their telomeres get shorter, and shorter, unless they are lengthened by telomerase. If a cell mutates in a certain way, it can have the telomerase repeatedly lengthen its telomeres, therefore making it virtually immortal. Though this does not make a cell a cancer cell, it is on the way to being cancer: all cancer cells are virtually 'immortal' in this way. I hope this answers your question, at least.
3 :
Normal health cells have a set number of cell divisions that they are able to under go. This number of divisions is called the Hayflick limit. After a cell has undergone these divisions, it becomes senescent and is no longer able to divide. The timer that the cell uses to count down the number of times that a cell is capable of dividing is the telomere (more specifically, the telomere length). Every time a cell divides, its telomere becomes shorter by about 200 bases. When the telomere becomes too short the cell can no longer divide and becomes senescent. Research into telomeres can provide a treatment for cancer because cancer cells need to acquire the ability to divide forever. The way in which they do this is by finding ways to overcome senescence. This is done by finding a way to maintain long telomeres. One enzyme, telomerase, allows cancer cells and stem cells to add DNA on to their telomeres, therefore rebuild thier telomeres and giving these cells the ability to divide an infinite amout of times.By inhibiting telomerase you will force cells to undergo senscence. Cancer cells can divide an infinite amout a times. A telomerase inhibitor will put a limit on the number of times that a cancer cell can divide.
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