Abstract

To determine the evolutionary origin of the human telomere sequence (TTAGGG)n, biotinylated oligodeoxynucleotides of this sequence were hybridized to metaphase spreads from 91 different species, including representative orders of bony fish, reptiles, amphibians, birds, and mammals. Under stringent hybridization conditions, fluorescent signals were detected at the telomeres of all chromosomes, in all 91 species. The conservation of the (TTAGGG)n sequence and its telomeric location, in species thought to share a common ancestor over 400 million years ago, strongly suggest that this sequence is the functional vertebrate telomere.

Keywords

TelomereBiologyVertebrateSequence (biology)Conserved sequenceEvolutionary biologyFish <Actinopterygii>GeneticsDNAGeneBase sequenceFishery

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Year
1989
Type
article
Volume
86
Issue
18
Pages
7049-7053
Citations
834
Access
Closed

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J. Meyne, Robert L. Ratliff, Robert K. Moyzis (1989). Conservation of the human telomere sequence (TTAGGG)n among vertebrates.. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences , 86 (18) , 7049-7053. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.86.18.7049

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DOI
10.1073/pnas.86.18.7049