Do telomeres adapt to physiological stress? Exploring the effect of exercise on telomere length and telomere-related proteins.

ABSTRACT: Aging is associated with a tissue degeneration phenotype marked by a loss of tissue regenerative capacity. Regenerative capacity is dictated by environmental and genetic factors that govern the balance between damage and repair. The age-associated changes in the ability of tissues to replace lost or damaged cells is partly the cause of many age-related diseases such as Alzheimer's disease, cardiovascular disease, type II diabetes, and sarcopenia. A well-established marker of the aging process is the length of the protective cap at the ends of chromosomes, called telomeres. Telomeres shorten with each cell division and with increasing chronological age and short telomeres have been associated with a range of age-related diseases. Several studies have shown that chronic exposure to exercise

SUBMITTER: Ludlow AT 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3884693 | biostudies-literature | 2013

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature