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Updated: Jun 24, 2026
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Utilizing Murine Inducible Telomerase Alleles in the Studies of Tissue Degeneration/Regeneration and Cancer
Published on: April 13, 2015
Telomerase reverse transcriptase (TERT) expression in canine mammary tissues: a specific marker for malignancy?
Michael Zavlaris1, Katerina Angelopoulou, Ioannis Vlemmas
1Laboratory of Pathology, School of Veterinary Medicine, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Thessaloniki, Greece.
Anticancer Research
|April 1, 2009
Summary
Telomerase reverse transcriptase (TERT) is present in most canine mammary tumors and some normal tissues. This finding suggests dogTERT may not be a reliable biomarker for canine mammary cancer diagnosis.
Area of Science:
- Oncology
- Molecular Biology
- Veterinary Medicine
Background:
- Telomerase reverse transcriptase (TERT) is crucial for telomere maintenance and is often expressed in human tumors.
- Telomerase activity is detected in many canine tumors, with dogTERT correlating to enzyme activity.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate dogTERT expression in normal and malignant canine mammary tissues.
- To evaluate dogTERT as a potential biomarker for canine mammary cancer.
Main Methods:
- Immunohistochemistry using a specific canine TERT antibody.
- Reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) to detect dogTERT mRNA.
Main Results:
- DogTERT immunoreactivity was found in 46/50 malignant tumors and 26/50 adjacent normal tissues, but not in healthy tissues.
- DogTERT mRNA was detected in 48/50 malignant tissues and 44/50 adjacent tissues, with low expression in healthy tissues.
- Observed both cytoplasmic and nuclear/cytoplasmic immunostaining patterns.
Conclusions:
- Normal canine mammary epithelium expresses TERT, challenging the view of its repression in healthy somatic cells.
- DogTERT expression in normal tissues suggests it may not be a specific or useful biomarker for canine mammary cancer.
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