On the involvement of extrachromosomal DNA in the aging process in
postmitotic cells you can read my review article (Nikitin AG, Shmookler
Reis RJ. (1997) Role of transposable elements in age-related genomic
instability. Genetical Research 69: 183-195). There are several reseachers
who extensively contributed to the understanding of this process, you may
want to check their publications as well (all in the references of my
review):
- Robert Shmookler Reis/ Sam Goldstein
- Ron C. Woodruff
- Alex Nikitin (yours trully)
- Chris Driver
- Hanz Oziewatcz
- Hachik Muradian
- Sergei Hershenson (or Gershenson)
There's a wealth of information on extrachromosomal circular DNA and aging
in fungi: it gets a little murky in higher eukaryotes.
Good luck with your search.
Alex Nikitin
Department of Pediatrics
Division of Hematology/ Oncology
University of Michigan
4410 Cancer and Geriatrics Center
1500 E. Medical Center Dr.
Ann Arbor, MI 48109-0938
Tel.: (734) 936-8895
E-mail: nikitin at umich.edu
Iuval clejan wrote:
> It looks like they used Chinese Hamster eggs and human tumor lines. But
> they could also exist in cells that are "post-mitotic" because those
> cells are descendants of cells that were dividing at some point.
> -Iuval
