title: Telomerase: diagnostics, cancer therapeutics and tissue engineering.
abstract: The enzyme telomerase has a key role in controlling the lifespan of human cells. It is absent from most somatic tissues but is reactivated in more than 85% of cancers, making the enzyme ideal as a marker of cancer cells and as a therapeutic target. In the context of normal human cells, the enzyme can extend cellular lifespan without causing cancer-associated changes or altering phenotypic properties. This capability could solve a major obstacle in the use of normal human cells for tissue engineering, that is, the induction of cellular senescence.
authors.affiliation: The Eppley Institute for Research in Cancer and Allied Diseases, The University of Nebraska Medical Center, 986805 Nebraska Medical Center, 68198, tel: +1 402 559 5556 fax: +1 402 559 4651, Omaha, NE, USA
authors.forename: Michel M.
authors.initials: MM
authors.lastname: Ouellette
authors.forename: Kwangmoon
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Lee