Assessment of telomere length and factors that contribute to its stability.
Assessment of telomere length and factors that contribute to its stability.
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DOI：
10.1046/j.1432-1033.2003.03410.x
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发表时间：
2003-02
期刊：
影响因子：
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通讯作者：
Sabita N. Saldanha;L. G. Andrews;T. Tollefsbol
中科院分区：
文献类型：
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作者：
Sabita N. Saldanha;L. G. Andrews;T. Tollefsbol
被称为端粒的串联六聚体重复序列的短链覆盖线性染色体的末端。这些重复序列保护染色体免于降解，并防止染色体末端连接，这是由于末端复制问题而可能发生的现象。端粒由端粒酶的活性维持。染色体末端的端粒重复序列的总数决定了端粒长度，除了其在染色体稳定中的重要性之外，端粒长度还是正常和恶性组织中端粒酶活性的有用指标。端粒长度的稳定性是影响多种癌细胞增殖能力的重要因素之一，因此，端粒长度的检测和估计是极其重要的。直到最近，端粒长度的分析主要使用标准的Southern印迹技术。然而，该技术的复杂性导致了对更简单和快速的检测方法的探索。诸如荧光探针的使用和分选细胞的能力等改进极大地增强了端粒长度测量的容易性和灵敏度。最近的进展，这些技术的局限性进行了评估。帮助端粒缩短的药物可能有助于肿瘤消退。因此，有助于端粒稳定性的因素可能会影响具有癌症治疗潜力的药物的效率。这些因素与端粒长度的关系也在本分析中进行了研究。
Short strands of tandem hexameric repeats known as telomeres cap the ends of linear chromosomes. These repeats protect chromosomes from degradation and prevent chromosomal end-joining, a phenomenon that could occur due to the end-replication problem. Telomeres are maintained by the activity of the enzyme telomerase. The total number of telomeric repeats at the terminal end of a chromosome determines the telomere length, which in addition to its importance in chromosomal stabilization is a useful indicator of telomerase activity in normal and malignant tissues. Telomere length stability is one of the important factors that contribute to the proliferative capacity of many cancer cell types; therefore, the detection and estimation of telomere length is extremely important. Until relatively recently, telomere lengths were analyzed primarily using the standard Southern blot technique. However, the complexities of this technique have led to the search for more simple and rapid detection methods. Improvements such as the use of fluorescent probes and the ability to sort cells have greatly enhanced the ease and sensitivity of telomere length measurements. Recent advances, and the limitations of these techniques are evaluated. Drugs that assist in telomere shortening may contribute to tumor regression. Therefore, factors that contribute to telomere stability may influence the efficiency of the drugs that have potential in cancer therapy. These factors in relation to telomere length are also examined in this analysis.