Abstract
Telomerase synthesizes DNA sequences that protect the integrity of chromosome ends. A model for how the components of this enzyme complex co-assemble offers insight into its structure and function. See Article p.187 The ends of linear chromosomes in eukaryotes are maintained by a ribonucleoprotein complex known as telomerase. Juli Feigon and colleagues have obtained a long-awaited structure of the ciliate (Tetrahymena thermophila) telomerase by electron microscopy. Modelling with crystal structures of various components allowed identification of the catalytic core and subunit interactions, and a complete in vitro reconstitution of the enzyme was performed. The structure provides unprecedented detail about the architecture of the ribonucleoprotein catalytic core and reveals the organization of holoenzyme subunits that confer processivity and bridge telomerase to telomeres.
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