A new structure of telomeric DNA has been discovered with the help of physics. The key to living longer is telomeres. Each time a cell divides, they shorten. They die if they become too short. Aging and disease will be understood by the new discovery.
There are other scientific disciplines that come to mind when mentioning DNA. One of the scientists who found the new structure is from the LION. He uses methods from physics for his research. This caught the attention of biologists from the university. He was asked to help with the study. The results have been published in nature.
The beads are strung together.
The genes that determine what we look like are on our chromosomes. Telomers are at the ends of the chromosomes. There are plastic tips at the end of a shoelace.
It takes two meters of DNA to fit in a cell. A nucleosome is achieved by wrapping the DNA with packages of the same thing. A piece of free (or unbound) DNA, a nucleosome, and so on are arranged into a string of beads.
There is a string of beads. The length of the DNA between the nucleosomes is what determines how it works. There are two structures that happen after folding. Two beads stick together in one of them. The beads can't stick together if the piece of DNA is shorter. Two stacks form next to each other.
The researchers found a new structure to the telomeres. The free DNA between the beads is gone because the nucleosomes are so close together. One big helix is created by this.
A new structure was discovered with the help of two different methods. The latter technique came from the lab. A small magnetic ball is stuck to the other end of the glass slide, which is the end of the DNA. The pearls are pulled apart by a set of strong magnets. You can learn more about how the string is folded by measuring the amount of force it takes to pull the beads apart. An electron microscope was used by the researchers in Singapore.
Van Noort believes that structure is the holy grail of biology. If we know the structure of the molecule, we can better understand how genes are switched on and off, as well as how cells repair and copy DNA. The new structure will help us understand the building blocks in the body. It will help us study aging and diseases like cancer and develop drugs to fight them.
More information: Aghil Soman et al, Columnar structure of human telomeric chromatin, Nature (2022). DOI: 10.1038/s41586-022-05236-5 Journal information: Nature
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