[The structures at the termini of chromosomes: what is there hidden under the cap ?].

The telomeres are the nucleoproteic structures present at the ends of eukaryotic chromosomes. One can compare them to the protective ends of a shoelace; when the ends get eroded, the shoelace disintegrates and we dispose of it. The same thus applies to the chromosomes; when telomeres reach a critical threshold for function, the genome becomes unstable and the cell senesces. Therefore, telomeres, and particularly their terminal DNA structures, are critical for the integrity of the genome.