FISH-ing for Links Between Cancer and Aging (IMAGE)

Salk Institute

FISH-ing for Links Between Cancer and Aging

Caption

The chromosomes were isolated from a cell taken from a patient with Werner Syndrome, a premature aging disease that is caused by the loss of the WRN gene. Painting each chromosome pair in a different color reveals the breakage and fusion of chromosomes (see chromosomes 6 and 10), which causes genomic instability and could explain the high incidence of cancer among individuals with Werner syndrome.

Credit

Image courtesy of Dr. Anna Jauch, Institute of Human Genetics in Heidelberg, Germany.

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