Telomeres

Telomere lengthening in humans has been an important research topic for a number of years, as it became clearer how exactly telomeres work and what they do within the body. Telomeres are short sections of DNA that are found at the end of chromosomes, and as we age they become even shorter. Eventually they become too short to be replicated, and the cell that each telomere is linked to will die. This is a natural part of aging, but research has shown that telomere lengthening can aid longevity.

Dr. William Andrews, one of the world’s leading authorities on telomerase biology, has written, “almost every known disease can be attributed to the shortening of telomeres.”

Did you know?…

1. Telomeres are composed of a few hundred or more repeats of the nucleotide sequence TTAGGG (1,2) (where T= thymine; A = adenine; G= guanine) at the ends of chromosomes.
2. Research into Telomeres and their impact on aging has been ongoing since the 1960s.
3. A natural telomerase activator, TA-65, derived from the astragalus plant, turns on the hTERT gene to lengthen telomeres in animal and human cells.