title: Telomerase activity is correlated with lower grade and lower stage bladder carcinomas.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Telomerase is a ribonucleoprotein enzyme that compensates for the progressive erosion of telomeres. The increasing interest in telomerase is motivated by the demonstration that most human carcinomas are telomerase positive. The potential use of telomerase activity in bladder carcinomas using a urine sample has been reported in several studies. However, little is known about the detection of telomerase activity in bladder carcinoma tissues. Herein, we investigate telomerase activity in bladder carcinoma tissues according to grade (G) and stage.
  
  
  METHODS
  Telomerase activity was assayed by polymerase chain reaction enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay methods. Malignant lesions were assessed in 37 patients with bladder carcinoma and no malignant lesions were assessed in five patients with dysplasia or inflammatory bladder lesions.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Twenty-three out of 37 carcinoma samples were telomerase-positive and one out of five control samples without carcinoma was telomerase-positive. The positive rates according to stage and grade were 83.3% for superficial and 42.1% for invasive stages and 83.3% for G1, 66.7% for G2 and 40.0% for G3. Telomerase activity was correlated with lower grade and lower stage bladder carcinomas.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  These results strongly suggest that reactivation of telomerase may differ between superficial and invasive bladder carcinomas and also between low grade and high grade bladder carcinomas.
authors.affiliation: Department of Urology, Faculty of Medicine, Toyama Medical and Pharmaceutical University, 2630 Sugitani, Toyama 930-0194, Japan. okumura@kamiichi-hosp.jp
authors.forename: Akiou
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Okumura
authors.forename: Ichiro
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Mizuno
authors.forename: Osamu
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Nagakawa
authors.forename: Hideki
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Fuse
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002277:Carcinoma / Q000201:enzymology* / Q000473:pathology*; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009361:Neoplasm Invasiveness; D009367:Neoplasm Staging; D019098:Telomerase / Q000378:metabolism*; D001743:Urinary Bladder / Q000201:enzymology / Q000473:pathology; D001749:Urinary Bladder Neoplasms / Q000201:enzymology* / Q000473:pathology*
chemical_list: D019098:Telomerase