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Answer 1

All DNA, somatic and germ line, mutates at an average rate in humans. So, one picks up deletions, neutral base pair mutations and even more serious frame shift mutations. All mutations are just a discrepancy, copying error, in the DNA replication.

Answer 2

Another important change progressing with age is the length of the telomeric sequences. Telomeric sequences (which, if I am remembering correctly, is made up of something akin to LTR, or long, terminal repeat sequences) are sequences of nucleotide basepairs at the ends of the chromosomes. They do not code for proteins, but 'tie together' the ends of the molecular huge double helix that is a chromosome, and presumably play some role in preventing the random fusion of separate chromosomes. With each cell mitotic division in somatic tissues, a chromosome may lose a part of its telomeric sequences. If no telomeric bands remain, a chromosome may start to 'unravel', leading to apoptosis, the self-destruction of the cell. It is speculated that the loss of telomeric sequences plays some part in the aging process.

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12y ago

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