Telomere Length Measurement in Different Ocular Structures: A Potential Implication in Corneal Endothelium Pathogenesis

Abstract excerpt

PURPOSE: Human chromosomes are protected at their end by a long portion of hexameric tandem repeats, the telomere. In somatic cells, telomere attrition caused by endogenous and exogenous oxidative stress as well as DNA replication can threaten genomic integrity and lead to the deterioration of tissue functions and an age-related physiological decline. The human eye is a complex organ in which cells of different...