Genes encoding ribosomal RNA (rDNA) are essential for cell survival and are particularly sensitive to factors leading to genomic instability. Their repetitive character makes them prone to inappropriate recombinational events arising from collision of transcriptional and replication machineries, resulting in unstable rDNA copy numbers. In this review, we summarize current knowledge on the structure and organization of rDNA, its role in sensing changes in the genome, and its linkage to aging. We also review recent findings on the main factors involved in chromatin assembly and DNA repair in the maintenance of rDNA stability in the model plants Arabidopsis thaliana and the moss Physcomitrella patens, providing a view across the plant evolutionary tree.

• MeSH
• Arabidopsis genetika   MeSH
• DNA rostlinná genetika   MeSH
• genetická transkripce MeSH
• genová dávka MeSH
• lidé MeSH
• mechy genetika   MeSH
• nestabilita genomu MeSH
• oprava DNA * MeSH
• replikace DNA MeSH
• restrukturace chromatinu MeSH
• ribozomální DNA genetika   MeSH
• stárnutí genetika   MeSH
• zvířata MeSH
• Check Tag
• lidé MeSH
• zvířata MeSH
• Publikační typ
• časopisecké články MeSH
• přehledy MeSH