Futurity.org – Rogue DNA busts out of aging cell ‘prison’

As cells age, they lose control over parasitic strands of mobile DNA that insert themselves into chromosomes, new research shows.The parasitic strands of genetic material called transposable elements—transposons—lurk in our chromosomes, poised to wreak genomic havoc. Cells have evolved ways to defend themselves, but in the new study, researchers describe how cells lose this ability as they age, possibly resulting in a decline in their function and health.
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