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Telomerase is a reverse transcriptase enzyme that carries its own RNA molecule (e.g., with the sequence 3′-CCCAAUCCC-5′ in Trypanosoma brucei) [3] which is used as a template when it elongates telomeres. Telomerase is active in gametes and most cancer cells, but is normally absent in most somatic cells.
Two concerns with applying telomerase inhibitors in cancer treatment are that effective treatment requires continuous, long-term drug application and that off-target effects are common. [30] For example, the telomerase inhibitor imetelstat, first proposed in 2003, [31] [32] has been held up in clinical trials due to hematological toxicity. [30]
Medical research for cancer begins much like research for any disease. In organized studies of new treatments for cancer, the pre-clinical development of drugs, devices, and techniques begins in laboratories, either with isolated cells or in small animals, most commonly rats or mice. In other cases, the proposed treatment for cancer is already ...
90% of cancers are characterized by increased telomerase activity. [28] Lung cancer is the most well characterized type of cancer associated with telomerase. [29] There is a lack of substantial telomerase activity in some cell types such as primary human fibroblasts, which become senescent after about 30–50 population doublings. [28]
Alternative Lengthening of Telomeres (also known as "ALT") is a telomerase-independent mechanism by which cancer cells avoid the degradation of telomeres.. At each end of the chromosomes of most eukaryotic cells, there is a telomere: a region of repetitive nucleotide sequences which protects the end of the chromosome from deterioration or from fusion with neighboring chromosomes.
Cancer cells have unique features that make them "immortal" according to some researchers. The enzyme telomerase is used to extend the cancer cell's life span. While the telomeres of most cells shorten after each division, eventually causing the cell to die, telomerase extends the cell's telomeres. This is a major reason that cancer cells can ...