title: Telomerase as a therapeutic target.
abstract: Ribonucleoprotein telomerase is an enzyme that elongates telomeric DNA. In cells without detectable telomerase activity telomeres shorten with every cell generation and reaching critical length is a signal for cell death. Normal human somatic cells express undetectable, or low (bone marrow and peripheral leukocytes), telomerase activity. Reactivation of telomerase (immortalization) is probably necessary during development of a fully malignant cancer. Consequently, telomerase was proposed to be a therapeutic target for the cancer therapy. Potential results (including side-effects) of telomerase inhibition are being considered. After all, telomerase inhibition can be useful not only in the therapy, but also in cancer biology research, elucidating ageing and immortalization phenomena.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Human Genetics, Polish Academy of Sciences, Poznań, Poland.
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Huminiecki
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D016922:Cellular Senescence; D004789:Enzyme Activation; D006801:Humans; D008954:Models, Biological; D012377:Rodentia; D019098:Telomerase / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D019098:Telomerase