Telomerase reverse transcriptase induced thyroid carcinoma cell proliferation through PTEN/AKT signaling pathway

Area of Science:

• Oncology
• Molecular Biology
• Cell Biology

Background:

• Thyroid carcinoma is the most common endocrine malignancy globally.
• Novel molecular targets are crucial for thyroid cancer diagnosis and treatment.
• Telomerase reverse transcriptase (TERT) is implicated in cell proliferation across various cancers.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the role and underlying mechanisms of TERT in papillary thyroid cancer (PTC) cell proliferation.
• To establish TERT overexpression and interference models in PTC cells.

Main Methods:

• Construction of TERT overexpression (rTERT) and interference (siTERT) models using liposome transfection.
• Assessment of transfection efficiency via RT-qPCR and Western blotting.
• Evaluation of cell proliferation (MTT, CFDA SE assays), cell cycle progression (Propidium Iodide assay), and key signaling pathway components (RT-qPCR, Western blotting).

Main Results:

• TERT overexpression significantly increased PTC cell proliferation and accelerated cell cycle progression.
• TERT silencing significantly decreased PTC cell proliferation and induced G1/S phase arrest.
• TERT modulated the PTEN/AKT signaling pathway, affecting levels of P27, P53, PTEN, CDK2, Cyclin D1, and phosphorylated AKT.

Conclusions:

• TERT plays a significant role in promoting papillary thyroid cancer cell proliferation.
• The PTEN/AKT signaling pathway is a key mechanism through which TERT induces thyroid carcinoma cell proliferation.