Multiple steps, including C-strand resection, telomerase-mediated elongation, and C-strand synthesis are involved in processing and maintaining the telomere. Though this module posits a linear transit for the steps, in humans it is not well understood how these steps are coordinated and what other events may be involved.

Telomeric DNA can form higher order structures. Electron microscopy of telomeric DNA isolated from human cells provided evidence for lariat-type structures termed telomeric loops, or t-loops (Griffith et al., 1999). t-loops are proposed to result from the invasion of the 3' G-rich single strand overhang into the double stranded telomeric TTAGGG repeat tract. The function of the t-loop is presumed to be the masking of the 3' telomeric overhang. Multiple protein factors can bind telomeric DNA and likely contribute to dynamic, higher order structures.