Title: Banana Telomeres | Credit: The Saturday Museum

Banana Telomeres

The Saturday Museum | Digital Image

Peel a banana and cut or nibble a bit off the end. Do the same at the other end and repeat.

 

This kitchen experiment was created by Tim and Mike. It helps us to understand that each time a cell copies itself a small part of the end, called a telomere, gets a bit shorter. Over time the telomeres get too short to do their job, which is partly why we age.

Recipe cover