Telomere and telomerase: implications for future prospects.

The 2009 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine was awarded to Drs Blackburn, Szostak and Greider for their discovery of how chromosomes are protected by telomeres and the enzyme telomerase. This minireview series consisting of three independent reviews discusses different aspects of this research, an area fuelling clinical applications in various human diseases including ageing and cancer.