Telomere
In the nucleus of a cell, the DNA molecule is packaged into thread-like structures called chromosomes. At the ends of the chromosomes are stretches of DNA called telomeres, which protect our genetic data, cells division, and hold some secrets to how we age and get cancer.
Telomeres are sequences of DNA - chains of chemical code. They are made of four nucleic acid bases namely: Guanine (G), Adenine (A), Thymine (T) and Cytosine (C), where they build repeating sequences of TTAGGG on one strand of DNA bound to AATCCC on the other strand. Thus, one section of telomere is made by six repeated base pairs.
During birth, the length of telomeres ranges from 8,000 base pairs to 3,000 base pairs, the amount will reduce to as low as 1,500 pairs in elderly people. Each time a cell divides, an average person loses 30 to 200 base pairs from the ends of that cell's telomeres.
In the nucleus of a cell, the DNA molecule is packaged into thread-like structures called chromosomes. At the ends of the chromosomes are stretches of DNA called telomeres, which protect our genetic data, cells division, and hold some secrets to how we age and get cancer.
Telomeres are sequences of DNA - chains of chemical code. They are made of four nucleic acid bases namely: Guanine (G), Adenine (A), Thymine (T) and Cytosine (C), where they build repeating sequences of TTAGGG on one strand of DNA bound to AATCCC on the other strand. Thus, one section of telomere is made by six repeated base pairs.
During birth, the length of telomeres ranges from 8,000 base pairs to 3,000 base pairs, the amount will reduce to as low as 1,500 pairs in elderly people. Each time a cell divides, an average person loses 30 to 200 base pairs from the ends of that cell's telomeres.
