title: Curcuminoid derivatives enhance telomerase activity in an in vitro TRAP assay.
abstract: The length of telomeres controls the life span of eukaryotic cells. Telomerase maintains the length of telomeres in certain eukaryotic cells, such as germline cells and stem cells, and allows these cells to evade replicative senescence. Here, we report for the first time a number of curcuminoid derivatives that enhance telomerase activity in an in vitro TRAP assay. A preliminary analysis of structure-activity relationships found that the minimal requirement for this enhanced telomerase activity is a curcuminoid core with at least one n-pentylpyridine side chain, while curcuminoids with two such side chains exhibit even greater activity. The finding here might lead to a new class of telomerase activators that act directly or indirectly on telomerase, rather than through the reactivation of the telomerase reverse transcriptase (TERT) gene associated with other telomerase activators found in the literature.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Medicine, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai 50200, Thailand.
authors.forename: Thanachai
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Taka
authors.affiliation: Division of Physical Science, Faculty of Science and Technology, Huachiew Chalermprakiet University, Samutprakarn 10540, Thailand.
authors.forename: Chatchawan
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Changtam
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Medicine, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai 50200, Thailand.
authors.forename: Pak
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Thaichana
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Medicine, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai 50200, Thailand.
authors.forename: Navakoon
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Kaewtunjai
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science, Ramkhamhaeng University, Bangkok 10240, Thailand.
authors.forename: Apichart
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Suksamrarn
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry and the Texas Center for Superconductivity, University of Houston, Houston, TX 77204-5003, USA.
authors.forename: T Randall
authors.initials: TR
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Medicine, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai 50200, Thailand.
authors.forename: Wirote
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Tuntiwechapikul
mesh_terms: D027885:Astragalus propinquus / Q000201:enzymology; D003474:Curcumin / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000494:pharmacology*; D004789:Enzyme Activation / Q000187:drug effects; D021141:Nucleic Acid Amplification Techniques; D009841:Oligonucleotides / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism; D013329:Structure-Activity Relationship; D019098:Telomerase / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D009841:Oligonucleotides; D019098:Telomerase; D003474:Curcumin
keywords: Cell senescence; Curcuminoid derivatives; Telomerase; Telomerase activator