Ageing across the great divide: tissue transformation, organismal growth and temperature shape telomere dynamics through the metamorphic transition.

ABSTRACT: Telomere attrition is considered a useful indicator of cellular and whole-organism ageing rate. While approximately 80% of animal species undergo metamorphosis that includes extensive tissue transformations (involving cell division, apoptosis, de-differentiation and de novo formation of stem cells), the effect on telomere dynamics is unknown. We measured telomeres in Xenopus laevis developing from larvae to adults under contrasting environmental temperatures. Telomere dynamics were linked to the degree of tissue transformation during development. Average telomere length in gut tissue increased dramatically during metamorphosis, when the gut shortens by 75% and epithelial cells de-differentiate into stem cells. In the liver (retained from larva) and hindlimb muscle (new

SUBMITTER: Burraco P 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9904946 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature