Cech Thomas R
Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO 80309, USA.
Cell. 2004 Jan 23;116(2):273-9. doi: 10.1016/s0092-8674(04)00038-8.
In their 1985 Cell paper, Greider and Blackburn announced the discovery of an enzyme that extended the DNA at chromosome telomeres in the ciliate, Tetrahymena. Since then, there has been an explosion of knowledge about both the RNA and protein subunits of this unusual ribonucleoprotein enzyme in organisms ranging from the ciliates to yeast to humans. The regulation of telomerase is now understood to take place both at the level of synthesis of the enzyme and via the state of its substrate, the telomere itself. The roles of telomerase in both cellular immortality and cancer are vibrant areas of current research.
在1985年发表于《细胞》杂志的论文中，格雷德和布莱克本宣布发现了一种酶，该酶可延长纤毛虫四膜虫染色体端粒中的DNA。从那时起，关于这种不同寻常的核糖核蛋白酶的RNA和蛋白质亚基，从纤毛虫到酵母再到人类等生物体中的相关知识呈爆发式增长。现在人们了解到，端粒酶的调节既发生在酶的合成水平，也通过其底物端粒自身的状态来进行。端粒酶在细胞永生和癌症中的作用是当前研究的活跃领域。
