Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun Either of the sections of DNA occurring at the ends of a chromosome.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun genetics Either of the sequences of DNA at each end of a eukaryotic chromosome.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun either (free) end of a eukaryotic chromosome

Etymologies

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Examples

  • And, we realized the old truism from the original cytogenetics which was that the telomere is really important for protecting ends and, as you might expect, the cell actually devotes all sorts of machinery to make sure that never goes wrong, or goes wrong as little as possible.

    Elizabeth H. Blackburn - Interview 2009

  • It serves as the template when the telomere is built, while the protein component is required for the construction work, i.e. the enzymatic activity.

    The 2009 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine - Press Release 2009

  • I wanted to ask about women in telomere research because it's been commented before that it's a field where, happily a large number of women have contributed.

    Carol W. Greider - Interview 2009

  • A telomere is the cap of your DNA, and as you age or develop an illness it shortens.

    Look Younger, Live Longer? 2011

  • With a blood test of white cells, they were able to measure damage to DNA, specifically the most fragile part of the chromosome, called the telomere.

    SO STRESSED William Kent Krueger 2010

  • With a blood test of white cells, they were able to measure damage to DNA, specifically the most fragile part of the chromosome, called the telomere.

    SO STRESSED William Kent Krueger 2010

  • A telomere is a region at the end of every cell chromosome that contains repeated DNA sequences but no genes; telomeres act to protect the ends of the chromosomes and prevent them from fusing together — rather like the plastic tips that keep shoelaces from unraveling.

    Astragalus Root Can Prevent Telomere Shortening GreenFertility 2008

  • Newswise — Like other kinds of cells, immune cells lose the ability to divide as they age because a part of their chromosomes known as a telomere becomes progressively shorter with cell division.

    Astragalus Root Can Prevent Telomere Shortening GreenFertility 2008

  • A telomere is a region at the end of every cell chromosome that contains repeated DNA sequences but no genes; telomeres act to protect the ends of the chromosomes and prevent them from fusing together — rather like the plastic tips that keep shoelaces from unraveling.

    Archive 2008-11-01 GreenFertility 2008

  • Newswise — Like other kinds of cells, immune cells lose the ability to divide as they age because a part of their chromosomes known as a telomere becomes progressively shorter with cell division.

    Archive 2008-11-01 GreenFertility 2008

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