Telomere dynamics in non-model organisms: Developing a standardised approach
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Edinburgh
Department Name: Sch of Biological Sciences
Abstract
United Kingdom
People |
ORCID iD |
| Daniel Nussey (Principal Investigator) | |
| Pat Monaghan (Co-Investigator) |
Publications
Froy H
(2017)
No evidence for parental age effects on offspring leukocyte telomere length in free-living Soay sheep.
in Scientific reports
Monaghan P
(2018)
Understanding diversity in telomere dynamics.
in Philosophical transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series B, Biological sciences
Nussey DH
(2014)
Measuring telomere length and telomere dynamics in evolutionary biology and ecology.
in Methods in ecology and evolution
Reichert S
(2017)
Telomere length measurement by qPCR in birds is affected by storage method of blood samples.
in Oecologia
Watson RL
(2017)
Sex differences in leucocyte telomere length in a free-living mammal.
in Molecular ecology
Wilbourn RV
(2017)
Age-dependent associations between telomere length and environmental conditions in roe deer.
in Biology letters
Wilbourn RV
(2018)
The relationship between telomere length and mortality risk in non-model vertebrate systems: a meta-analysis.
in Philosophical transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series B, Biological sciences
| Description | The grant funded an international workshop which took place in Drymen, Scotland in August 2011. Discussion and collaborations emerging from the workshop have laid the foundation for a much larger network (funded by Leverhulme Trust in 2013) to take forward inter-disciplinary research into variation in telomere dynamics. Since 2013, the network has met annually and in 2017 we had our largest meeting to date involving over 70 delegates from all over the world. It also resulted in a methods paper being published in Methods in Ecology and Evolution, authored by many of the delegates, that offered a consensus view of methods available for telomere length measurement. In early 2018, the network of researchers involved also produced a special issue of the esteemed journal, Phil Trans R Soc Lond B, including 14 articles covering a broad range of topics associated with understanding variation in telomere biology. |
| Exploitation Route | The methodological consensus offered by the workshop will likely guide future investigations of telomere dynamics in different species, furthering our understanding of the causes of variation in telomere length and potential longevity among and within species. |
| Sectors | Healthcare |
| Description | International Workshop Grant |
| Amount | £98,000 (GBP) |
| Organisation | The Leverhulme Trust |
| Sector | Charity/Non Profit |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 11/2013 |
| End | 10/2016 |
| Description | Measurements of telomere length at different life stages as predictive biomarkers of health, reproduction and longevity in dairy cattle |
| Amount | £249,707 (GBP) |
| Funding ID | BB/L007312/1 |
| Organisation | Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 04/2014 |
| End | 03/2017 |