Klingelhutz A J
Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, North Seattle, WA 98109, USA.
Anticancer Res. 1999 Nov-Dec;19(6A):4823-30.
Normal human cells have a limited lifespan in culture called the Hayflick limit. Recent studies have indicated that telomere shortening is one of the important meters utilized by cells to determine the Hayflick limit, and that activation of a mechanism to maintain telomere length is essential for cells to become immortal. It is generally believed that cells must have a means to maintain telomeres in order to progress to malignancy. Most cancers do this by activating an enzyme called telomerase which adds telomeric repeats to the telomere ends. Recently, expression of this enzyme has been shown to extend the lifespan of cells. This review discusses the research that led to the discovery of telomerase, the characteristics of telomerase complex, and how recent and future advances in the telomerase field may lead to better diagnostic and treatment protocols for many different cancer types.
正常人类细胞在培养中的寿命有限，称为海弗利克极限。最近的研究表明，端粒缩短是细胞用来确定海弗利克极限的重要指标之一，并且激活维持端粒长度的机制对于细胞永生至关重要。人们普遍认为，细胞必须有一种维持端粒的方法才能发展为恶性肿瘤。大多数癌症通过激活一种名为端粒酶的酶来做到这一点，该酶会在端粒末端添加端粒重复序列。最近，已证明这种酶的表达可以延长细胞的寿命。这篇综述讨论了导致端粒酶发现的研究、端粒酶复合物的特征，以及端粒酶领域的最新进展和未来进展如何可能导致针对许多不同癌症类型的更好的诊断和治疗方案。
