Telomere dynamics in wild banded mongooses: Evaluating longitudinal and quasi-longitudinal markers of senescence.

ABSTRACT: Telomere length and the rate of telomere shortening have been suggested as particularly useful physiological biomarkers of the processes involved in senescent decline of somatic and reproductive function. However, longitudinal data on changes in telomere length across the lifespan are difficult to obtain, particularly for long-lived animals. Quasi-longitudinal studies have been proposed as a method to gain insight into telomere dynamics in long-lived species. In this method, minimally replicative cells are used as the baseline telomere length against which telomere length in highly replicative cells (which represent the current state) can be compared. Here we test the assumptions and predictions of the quasi-longitudinal approach using longitudinal telomere data in a wild cooperative mamma

SUBMITTER: Hares MC 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5956279 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature