# positions[].organizations[].parent[].label
College of Agriculture and Life Sciences

# overview
We are taking biochemical, molecular genetic and cytological approaches to study the structure, function and maintenance of telomeres. Telomeres are higher order nucleoprotein complexes that cap the ends of eukaryotic chromosomes and play essential roles in conferring genome stability and cell proliferation capacity. The protective cap of the telomere is comprised of specific telomere binding proteins that regulate the length of telomeric DNA tract and allow the cell distinguish the chromosome terminus from a double-strand break. Telomeric DNA is synthesized by the action of telomerase, an unusual reverse transcriptase that replenishes telomeric DNA lost as a consequence of replication by conventional DNA polymerases. We have developed the genetically tractable flowering plant Arabidopsis thaliana as a model system for studying telomeres in higher eukaryotes. With its sequenced genome, abundant genetic and transgenic tools, and extraordinarily high tolerance to genome instability, Arabidopsis has proven to be an excellent model for investigating fundamental processes in telomere biology. Current studies focus on defining the function and molecular evolution of telomere capping proteins and components of the telomerase ribonucleoprotein complex.

# keywords[]
Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction

# keywords[]
1.1 Normal Biological Development And Functioning

# keywords[]
Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction

# keywords[]
3102 Bioinformatics And Computational Biology

# keywords[]
Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction

# keywords[]
1.1 Normal Biological Development And Functioning

# keywords[]
1.1 Normal Biological Development And Functioning

# educationAndTraining[].organization.label
University of Alabama at Birmingham - (Birmingham, Alabama, United States)

# educationAndTraining[].organization.label
University of California, Berkeley - (Berkeley, California, United States)

# educationAndTraining[].organization.label
Auburn University - (Auburn, Alabama, United States)

# publications[].label
Arabidopsis telomerase takes off by uncoupling enzyme activity from telomere length maintenance in space.

# publications[].label
Chromatin Organization in Early Land Plants Reveals an Ancestral Association between H3K27me3, Transposons, and Constitutive Heterochromatin.

# publications[].label
MERISTEM DISORGANIZATION1 encodes TEN1, an essential telomere protein that modulates telomerase processivity in Arabidopsis.

# publications[].label
Selaginella moellendorffii telomeres: conserved and unique features in an ancient land plant lineage.

# publications[].label
Reiterative dG addition by Euplotes crassus telomerase during extension of non-telomeric DNA.

# publications[].label
Two RNA subunits and POT1a are components of Arabidopsis telomerase.

# publications[].publisher
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences

# publications[].label
Rearrangements of ribosomal DNA clusters in late generation telomerase-deficient Arabidopsis.

# publications[].label
Length regulation and dynamics of individual telomere tracts in wild-type Arabidopsis.

# publications[].label
Evolution of Arabidopsis protection of telomeres 1 alters nucleic acid recognition and telomerase regulation

# publications[].label
Telomere rapid deletion regulates telomere length in Arabidopsis thaliana.

# publications[].label
Components of the ribosome biogenesis pathway underlie establishment of telomere length set point in Arabidopsis.

# publications[].label
NOVEL ROLES FOR THE TELOMERE PROTEIN IN DNA-REPLICATION

# publications[].label
Natural variation in plant telomere length is associated with flowering time.

# publications[].label
Plant telomeres and telomerases. A review.

# publications[].label
Telomeres, telomerase and plant development

# publications[].label
Different modes of de novo telomere formation by plant telomerases.

# publications[].label
Plasticity, pleiotropy and fitness trade-offs in Arabidopsis genotypes with different telomere lengths.

# publications[].label
Evolution of TERT-interacting lncRNAs: expanding the regulatory landscape of telomerase.

# publications[].label
Blunt-ended telomeres: an alternative ending to the replication and end protection stories.

# publications[].label
POT1-independent single-strand telomeric DNA binding activities in Brassicaceae.

# publications[].label
tRNA ADENOSINE DEAMINASE 3 is required for telomere maintenance in Arabidopsis thaliana.

# publications[].label
Ku is required for telomeric C-rich strand maintenance but not for end-to-end chromosome fusions in Arabidopsis.

# publications[].publisher
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences

# publications[].label
ATM regulates the length of individual telomere tracts in Arabidopsis.

# publications[].publisher
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences

# publications[].label
Surprises from the chromosome front: lessons from Arabidopsis on telomeres and telomerase.

# publications[].label
The draft genome of the transgenic tropical fruit tree papaya (Carica papaya Linnaeus).

# publications[].label
Telomere structure, function and maintenance in Arabidopsis.

# publications[].label
DNA bound by the Oxytricha telomere protein is accessible to telomerase and other DNA polymerases.

# publications[].publisher
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences

# publications[].label
Evolution of the Telomere-Associated Protein POT1a in Arabidopsis thaliana Is Characterized by Positive Selection to Reinforce Protein–Protein Interaction

# publications[].label
A C-terminal Myb extension domain defines a novel family of double-strand telomeric DNA-binding proteins in Arabidopsis.

# publications[].label
The conserved structure of plant telomerase RNA provides the missing link for an evolutionary pathway from ciliates to humans.

# publications[].publisher
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences

# publications[].label
ATM and ATR make distinct contributions to chromosome end protection and the maintenance of telomeric DNA in Arabidopsis.

# publications[].label
Protection of Telomeres 1 is required for telomere integrity in the moss Physcomitrella patens.

# publications[].label
Developmentally programmed assembly of higher order telomerase complexes with distinct biochemical and structural properties.

# publications[].label
A transposable element within the Non-canonical telomerase RNA of Arabidopsis thaliana modulates telomerase in response to DNA damage [corrected].

# publications[].label
Telomere length deregulation and enhanced sensitivity to genotoxic stress in Arabidopsis mutants deficient in Ku70.

# publications[].label
Arabidopsis AN3 and OLIGOCELLULA genes link telomere maintenance mechanisms with cell division and expansion control.

# publications[].label
Chromosome healing: spontaneous and programmed de novo telomere formation by telomerase.

# publications[].label
STN1 protects chromosome ends in Arabidopsis thaliana.

# publications[].publisher
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences

# publications[].label
Recent emergence and extinction of the protection of telomeres 1c gene in Arabidopsis thaliana.

# publications[].label
Evolution of Arabidopsis protection of telomeres 1 alters nucleic acid recognition and telomerase regulation.

# publications[].label
Dyskerin is a component of the Arabidopsis telomerase RNP required for telomere maintenance.

# publications[].label
Oligomerization of the telomerase reverse transcriptase from Euplotes crassus.

# publications[].label
An alternative telomerase RNA in Arabidopsis modulates enzyme activity in response to DNA damage.

# publications[].label
Oligonucleotides complementary to the Oxytricha nova telomerase RNA delineate the template domain and uncover a novel mode of primer utilization.

# publications[].label
POT1a and components of CST engage telomerase and regulate its activity in Arabidopsis.

# publications[].label
Evolution of the Arabidopsis telomerase RNA.

# publications[].label
Developmentally regulated initiation of DNA synthesis by telomerase: evidence for factor‐assisted de novo telomere formation

# publications[].label
Arabidopsis retains vertebrate-type telomerase accessory proteins via a plant-specific assembly.

# publications[].label
Telomerase enzyme activity as a diagnostic tool to distinguish effusions of malignant and benign origin.

# publications[].label
TELOMERASE ACTIVATOR1 induces telomerase activity and potentiates responses to auxin in Arabidopsis.

# publications[].label
POT1 proteins in green algae and land plants: DNA-binding properties and evidence of co-evolution with telomeric DNA.

# publications[].label
Identification of an essential proximal sequence element in the promoter of the telomerase RNA gene of Tetrahymena thermophila.

# publications[].label
Dynamic Interactions of Arabidopsis TEN1: Stabilizing Telomeres in Response to Heat Stress.

# publications[].label
Functional Diversification of Replication Protein A Paralogs and Telomere Length Maintenance in Arabidopsis.

# publications[].label
A CST-like complex protects chromosome ends in Arabidopsis

# publications[].label
Retraction for Cifuentes-Rojas et al., Two RNA subunits and POT1a are components of Arabidopsis telomerase.

# publications[].publisher
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences

# publications[].label
Single-cell telomere-length quantification couples telomere length to meristem activity and stem cell development in Arabidopsis.

# publications[].label
Living with genome instability: plant responses to telomere dysfunction.

# publications[].publisher
American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)

# publications[].label
Arabidopsis POT1 associates with the telomerase RNP and is required for telomere maintenance.

# publications[].label
Telomeres, telomerase, and stability of the plant genome.

# publications[].label
Processing of nontelomeric 3' ends by telomerase: default template alignment and endonucleolytic cleavage.

# publications[].label
Arabidopsis SMG7 protein is required for exit from meiosis.

# publications[].label
Sequence of the macronuclear DNA encoding large subunit ribosomal protein 29 (L29) in Euplotes crassus and cycloheximide sensitivity.

# publications[].label
Analysis of poly(ADP-Ribose) polymerases in Arabidopsis telomere biology.

# publications[].label
Plant telomere biology: The green solution to the end-replication problem.

# publications[].label
3' terminal nucleotide sequence of the 17S ribosomal RNA species from Plasmodium falciparum.

# publications[].label
ATR cooperates with CTC1 and STN1 to maintain telomeres and genome integrity in Arabidopsis

# publications[].publisher
American Society for Cell Biology (ASCB)

# publications[].label
DDM1 guards against telomere truncation in Arabidopsis.

# publications[].label
No end of a problem. Telomeres (1995). Edited by Elizabeth M. Blackburn and Carol W. Greider. Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press. pp x+396. $80. ISBN 0 87696 457 2.

# publications[].label
Back to the future: The intimate and evolving connection between telomere-related factors and genotoxic stress.

# publications[].label
Flexible positioning of the telomerase-associated nuclease leads to preferential elimination of nontelomeric DNA.

# publications[].label
Evolution of CST function in telomere maintenance.

# publications[].label
Molecular analysis of telomere fusions in Arabidopsis: multiple pathways for chromosome end‐joining

# publications[].label
The Arabidopsis Pot1 and Pot2 proteins function in telomere length homeostasis and chromosome end protection.

# publications[].label
Conserved telomere maintenance component 1 interacts with STN1 and maintains chromosome ends in higher eukaryotes.

# publications[].label
The role of the nonhomologous end-joining DNA double-strand break repair pathway in telomere biology.

# publications[].label
Disruption of the telomerase catalytic subunit gene from Arabidopsis inactivates telomerase and leads to a slow loss of telomeric DNA.

# publications[].publisher
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences

# publications[].label
Telomerase interactions with DNA: Chromosome healing and telomere maintenance.

# publications[].label
Analysis of Carica papaya Telomeres and Telomere-Associated Proteins: Insights into the Evolution of Telomere Maintenance in Brassicales.

# publications[].label
Characterization and developmental patterns of telomerase expression in plants

# publications[].publisher
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences

# publications[].label
Analysis of the G‐overhang structures on plant telomeres: evidence for two distinct telomere architectures

# publications[].label
The Selaginella genome identifies genetic changes associated with the evolution of vascular plants.

# publications[].publisher
American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)

# publications[].label
Interactions between telomerase and primase physically link the telomere and chromosome replication machinery.

# publications[].label
Developmentally programmed gene elimination in Euplotes crassus facilitates a switch in the telomerase catalytic subunit.

# publications[].label
Telomere dynamics and fusion of critically shortened telomeres in plants lacking DNA ligase IV.

# researcherOn[].label
Negative Regulation of Telomerase In Arabidopsis

# researcherOn[].awardedBy.label
National Science Foundation - (Arlington, Virginia, United States)

# researcherOn[].label
Telomere structure and function in Arabidopsis

# researcherOn[].awardedBy.label
National Institutes of Health - (Bethesda, Maryland, United States)

# researcherOn[].label
Telomere Structure and Function In Arabidopsis

# researcherOn[].awardedBy.label
National Institutes of Health - (Bethesda, Maryland, United States)

# researcherOn[].label
Regulation of Non-Canonical Telomerase RNA

# researcherOn[].awardedBy.label
National Science Foundation - (Arlington, Virginia, United States)

# researcherOn[].label
IMSD at Texas A&M University:  Initiative for Maximizing Student Diversity in Biomedical Sciences

# researcherOn[].awardedBy.label
National Institutes of Health - (Bethesda, Maryland, United States)

# researcherOn[].awardedBy.preferredLabel
DHHS-NIH-National Institute of General Medical Science

# streetAddress
Texas A&M University; Biochemistry & Biophysics; 2128 TAMU

# organizations[]
College of Agriculture and Life Sciences

# schools[]
College of Agriculture and Life Sciences

# inTheNews[].label
Texas A&M Announces Members And Charge Of Commission On Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

# etdChairOf[].label
Xu, Hengyi (2015-05). Characterization of the Arabidopsis Telomerase Negative Regulator: A TE-Containing lncRNA TER2- Defining Its Role in and beyond Telomere Biology. Doctoral Dissertation.

# etdChairOf[].label
Ren, Shuxin (2006-04). Telomerase activator1: a zinc-finger protein that acts synergistically with auxin to control telomerase expression in Arabidopsis thaliana. Doctoral Dissertation.