Sending Out an SOS: How Telomeres Incriminate Cells That Can't Divide (IMAGE)

Salk Institute

Sending Out an SOS: How Telomeres Incriminate Cells That Can't Divide

Caption

This microscope image shows chromosomes in human lung cells exhibiting telomere damage caused by colcemid, a drug that arrests cell division. The Salk scientists discovered the molecular pathway that initiates a stress response upon treatment with chemotherapy drugs, resulting in a cessation of cell growth or cell death.

Credit

Courtesy of Jan Karlseder, Professor, Molecular and Cellular Biology Laboratory, Makoto Hayashi, research associate and James Fitzpatrick, Waitt Advanced Biophotonics Center

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