title: Expression of telomerase activity and oxidative stress in human hepatocellular carcinoma with cirrhosis.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To study the expression and significance of telomerase activity and oxidative stress in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) with cirrhosis.
  
  
  METHODS
  In this study, TRAP-ELISA assay was used to determine telomerase activity in 21 cases of HCC as well as in 23 cases of hepatic cirrhosis. Malondialdehyde (MDA), glutathione S-transferase (GST) and total anti-oxidative capacity (T-AOC) were also examined in the same samples with human MDA, GST and T-AOC kits.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Eighteen of 21 cases of HCC were found to have increased telomerase activity, whereas only three of the 23 non-cancerous cirrhotic samples were found to have weak telomerase activity, and the difference was significant (P<0.001). No significant difference in telomerase activity was detected according to different tumor size, tumor stage, histological grade, HBsAg, contents of albumin, bilirubin, ALT, AFP, r-GT and platelet. There were significant differences between HCC and cirrhosis in the expression of MDA, GST and T-AOC respectively. Telomerase activity correlated positively with the content of MDA (P<0.05).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Telomerase activation is the early event of carcinogenesis, which is not correlated with clinicopathological factors of HCC. The dysfunction of the anti-oxidative system is closely correlated with the progression from cirrhosis to hepatocellular carcinoma. Oxidative stress may contribute partly to telomerase activation.
authors.affiliation: Department of General Surgery, Shanghai No. 5 People's Hospital, Shanghai, China.
authors.forename: Dao-Yong
authors.initials: DY
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Zhi-Hai
authors.initials: ZH
authors.lastname: Peng
authors.forename: Guo-Qiang
authors.initials: GQ
authors.lastname: Qiu
authors.forename: Chong-Zhi
authors.initials: CZ
authors.lastname: Zhou
mesh_terms: D006528:Carcinoma, Hepatocellular / Q000150:complications* / Q000378:metabolism*; D006801:Humans; D008103:Liver Cirrhosis / Q000150:complications*; D008113:Liver Neoplasms / Q000150:complications* / Q000378:metabolism*; D008315:Malondialdehyde / Q000378:metabolism; D018384:Oxidative Stress; D019098:Telomerase / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D008315:Malondialdehyde; D019098:Telomerase