端粒、端粒酶的发现和意义--2009年诺贝尔生理学或医学奖简介

Discovery and Significance of Telomere and Telomerase——Introduction of Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 2009

2009年诺贝尔生理学或医学奖颁发给3名美国科学家,其主要贡献为解决了生物学研究领域中一个重大问题,即细胞分裂过程中,染色体如何完整复制,它们是如何受到保护而免于降解?Elizabeth H.Blackburn和Jack W.Szostak发现染色体末端的端粒DNA序列能保护染色体不被降解;Carol W.Greider和Elizabeth H.Blackburn鉴定出合成端粒DNA的酶——端粒酶。这些发现为推动衰老及肿瘤等领域的研究做出了巨大贡献。

This year＇ s Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine is awarded to three American scientists who have solved a major problem in biology： how the chromosomes can be copied in a complete way during cell divisions and how they are protected against degradation. Elizabeth H. Blackburn and Jack W. Szostak discovered that a unique DNA sequence in the telomeres protects the chromosomes from degradation. Carol W. Greider and Elizabeth H. Blackburn identified telomerase, the enzyme that makes telomere DNA. These discoveries made great contributions to promote the investigations on aging and tumor.