Pathways defective in the human premature aging disease Werner syndrome

Werner syndrome is the hallmark premature aging disease, where the patients appear much older than their chronological age. The Werner protein, defective in this disorder, is a DNA helicase and an exonuclease, and it participates in pathways of DNA repair, recombination, transcription and replication. The function and role of this protein is discussed in the light of how it functions in the aging process.