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Utilizing Murine Inducible Telomerase Alleles in the Studies of Tissue Degeneration/Regeneration and Cancer
08:34

Utilizing Murine Inducible Telomerase Alleles in the Studies of Tissue Degeneration/Regeneration and Cancer

Published on: April 13, 2015

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Oligonucleotide inhibitors of telomerase: prospects for anticancer therapy and diagnostics

M I Zvereva1, T S Zatsepin, D M Azhibek

  • 1Lomonosov Moscow State University, Chemistry Faculty, Moscow, 119991, Russia. olgash@genebee.msu.ru.

Biochemistry. Biokhimiia
|March 13, 2015
PubMed

Insights

Telomerase enables unlimited cell division and is active in most cancers but not normal cells. Inhibiting telomerase with oligonucleotides offers a promising strategy for developing new antitumor therapies and imaging agents.

Area of Science:

  • Molecular Biology
  • Biochemistry
  • Oncology

Background:

  • Telomerase activity is crucial for eukaryotic cell division and genome stability.
  • Telomerase is highly active in cancer cells but absent in most normal somatic cells.
  • This differential expression makes telomerase a prime target for cancer therapy.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To review oligonucleotide-based strategies for inhibiting telomerase.
  • To explore native and modified oligonucleotide inhibitors and their mechanisms.
  • To discuss telomerase-targeted oligonucleotide conjugates for tumor imaging.

Main Methods:

  • Literature review of telomerase function and inhibition.
  • Analysis of oligonucleotide interactions with telomerase components (hTERT and hTR).
  • Evaluation of native and modified oligonucleotide inhibitors.

Main Results:

  • Oligonucleotides can interfere with telomerase biogenesis and function.
  • Various native and modified oligonucleotides demonstrate inhibitory potential.
  • Telomerase-targeted conjugates show promise for in vivo tumor cell imaging.

Conclusions:

  • Oligonucleotide-mediated telomerase inhibition is a viable therapeutic strategy.
  • Modified oligonucleotides offer enhanced stability and efficacy.
  • Telomerase-targeted conjugates represent a novel approach for cancer diagnostics.

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