Accelerated telomere shortening and telomerase activation in Fanconi's anaemia

Fanconi's anaemia (FA) is an autosomal recessive disorder characterized by progressive bone marrow failure that often evolves towards acute leukaemia. FA also belongs to a group of chromosome instability diseases. Because telomeres are directly involved in chromosomal stability and in cell proliferation capacity, we examined telomere metabolism in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC). Telomere length was significantly shorter in 54 FA patient samples, compared to 51 controls (P<0.0001). In addition, mean telomere terminal restriction fragment lengths (TRF) in nine heterozygous patient samples did not differ from those of controls. In 14 samples from FA patients with severe aplastic anaemia (SFA), telomere length was significantly shorter than in 22 samples of age-matched FA patients with moderate haematological abnormalities (NSFA) (P<0.001). However, no correlation was found between TRF length and the presence of bone marrow clonal abnormalities in 16 additional, separately analysed, patient samples. Sequential measurement of TRF in six FA patients showed an accelerated rate of telomere shortening. Accordingly, telomere shortening rate was inversely correlated with clinical status. Telomerase, the enzyme that counteracts telomere shortening, was 4.8-fold more active in 25 FA patients than in 15 age-matched healthy controls. A model for the FA disease process is proposed.