Abstract
The extreme ends of eukaryotic chromosomes contain 3′ extensions in the form of single-stranded G-rich repeats, referred to as telomeric 3′ G-tails or overhangs. Increasing evidence has suggested that telomeric 3′ G-tails can adopt a G-quadruplex conformation both in vitro and in vivo. However, the role of G-quadruplexes on the structure and function of telomeric 3′ G-tails remains unclear. In the current study, we showed that the human telomeric 3′ G-tail sequence protected the duplex DNA ends in cis from being recognized as double strand breaks. This protection is dependent on the G-quadruplex conformation of the 3′ G-tail sequence. These results suggest that the ability of telomeric 3′ G-tails to adopt the end-protecting G-quadruplex conformation may be one of the reasons for the existence of the evolutionarily conserved G-stretch motifs in telomeric DNA sequences.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 18786-18792 |
Number of pages | 7 |
Journal | Journal of Biological Chemistry |
Volume | 282 |
Issue number | 26 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - Jun 29 2007 |
Externally published | Yes |
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Biochemistry
- Molecular Biology
- Cell Biology