Telomerase Nobel Prize In Physiology Or Medicine 2009

This article will examine the problem that three scientists solved (Elizabeth Blackburn

, Carol Greider, and Jack Szostak) that eventually led to them winning the telomerase Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 2009. Telomerase: the photocopier of cells

One of the biggest problems in biology is how a chromosome is able to be copied in a complete way during cell divisions and how those chromosomes were protected against degradation. Blackburn, Greider, and Szostak showed that the solution to the problem is the end of the chromosomes, the telomeres, and an enzyme that forms the telomeres, telomerase.

Telomerase in action

DNA molecules carry our genes and are packed into chromosomes and at the end of these chromosomes are telomeres. A unique DNA sequence that is found in telomeres is what protects the chromosomes from degradation. Furthermore, telomerase was found to be an enzyme that produces telomere DNA.

What this shows is that the ends of chromosomes are protected by telomeres that are produced by telomerase. With this knowledge scientists can conclude that as telomeres shorten, a cell ages. So, if telomerase activity is high, the telomere can maintain its length, and delay cellular senescence. This explains how cancer cells have eternal life and also how inherited diseases, which have defective telomerase, result in damaged cells.

These discoveries have had a huge affect on the scientific community. Scientists have been attempting to discover how we age and they have speculated that the shortening of telomeres is the reason for not only individual cells but for a whole organism. While telomeres are one factor, it turns out the aging process is far more complicated than previously thought.

Cancer and telomerase

Normal cells do not divide frequently, so they are rarely at a risk of shortening and have low telomerase activity. What the telomerase Nobel Prize explains though is that cancer cells have high levels of telomerase activity. What they hypothesize is cancer could be treated by eradicating telomerase.

Telomerase defects tied to other diseases

It is also been found that telomerase defects are a leading cause of inherited diseases such as some forms of congenital aplastic amenia. This disease is where insufficient cell divisions in the stem cells of the bone marrow lead to severe anemia. It is being hypothesized that we could fix these diseases by fixing the telomerase defect.

The discoveries by Blackburn, Greider, and Szostak were able to win them the telomerase Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for 2009. Their telomerase discoveries have greatly impacted the scientific community and will hopefully help solve the problems of aging, cancer, inherited diseases, and many more!

by: Stacey Zimmerman

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