Telomere maintenance mechanisms and cellular immortalization.

Immortal cell populations are able to proliferate indefinitely. Immortalization is associated with activation of processes that compensate for the telomeric shortening that accompanies cell division in normal somatic cells. In many immortal cell lines, telomere maintenance is provided by the action of the ribonucleoprotein enzyme complex, telomerase. Some immortal cell lines have undetectable or very low levels of telomerase activity and there is evidence that these cells maintain their telomeres by an alternative mechanism.