title: Telomerase activity in B and T lymphocytes of patients with systemic lupus erythematosus.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To evaluate telomerase activity as a marker of lymphocyte proliferation in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE).
  
  
  METHODS
  CD19+, CD4+, and CD8+ lymphocytes were isolated from the peripheral blood of nine patients with SLE and nine healthy controls by means of magnetic bead-coupled antibodies and tested for telomerase activity with the TRAP assay.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Telomerase activity was significantly increased in CD19+ B cells from patients with SLE. CD4+ and CD8+ T cells from lupus patients displayed increased mean telomerase activity, although the difference from normal controls did not reach statistical significance.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Increased telomerase activity in the B and the T cell lineage might indicate activation and proliferation of these lymphocytes.
authors.affiliation: Department of Haematopathology and Lymph Node Registry Kiel, University Kiel, Germany. wklapper@path.uni-kiel.de.
authors.forename: W
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Klapper
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Moosig
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Sotnikova
authors.forename: W
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Qian
authors.forename: J O
authors.initials: JO
authors.lastname: Schröder
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Parwaresch
mesh_terms: D016175:B-Lymphocyte Subsets / Q000201:enzymology* / Q000473:pathology; D002455:Cell Division / Q000276:immunology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008180:Lupus Erythematosus, Systemic / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology*; D016176:T-Lymphocyte Subsets / Q000201:enzymology* / Q000473:pathology; D019098:Telomerase / Q000097:blood*; D016615:Telomere / Q000648:ultrastructure
chemical_list: D019098:Telomerase