Telomeres--specialized structures at ends of linear chromosomes--serve a fascinating range of functions that molecular biologists and geneticists are only beginning to understand and exploit. For example, telomeres distinguish the natural end of a chromosome from a simple double-strand break, stabilize chromosomes by protecting them from fusion or activating cell cycle checkpoints, and provide mechanisms to compensate for the loss of terminal DNA sequence that occurs when linear DNA molecules are replicated. This book--the first to cover this exciting and rapidly expanding field--integrates the increasingly disparate strands of telomere research to provide an invaluable survey of the subject. Topics include the role of telomeres in nuclear organization; telomere DNA sequence and unusual structures formed by telomeric sequences in vitro; replication of telomeric sequences by telomerase and how this relates to various DNA sequence features; proteins that bind or interact with telomeres; the role of telomeres in programmed and spontaneous chromosome breakage; recent speculation on the relationship between human telomere loss, aging, and cancer; telomere position effects on replication and transcription; Drosophila telomere function; and the relationships between human telomere structure, genome analysis, and genetic disease. In a discipline as rapidly developing as telomere research, this book will serve as a user-friendly and much-needed resource for students and researchers in molecular biology and molecular genetics.