Role of Telomeres and Telomerase in Cancer and Aging
A special issue of International Journal of Molecular Sciences (ISSN 1422-0067). This special issue belongs to the section "Biochemistry".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 December 2017) | Viewed by 150895
Special Issue Editor
Interests: telomerase in ageing and cancer; TERT in mitochondria and brain; oxidative stress; mitochondria; senescence and ageing
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Telomeres and telomerase receive ever increasing interest from the scientific community. This includes biologists deciphering the complex mechanisms and interactions between the different components of telomeres and telomerase, as well as clinicians aiming to use telomere lengths as a biomarker for aging and diseases. Ever more details emerge about the tightly-regulated interaction of telomerase activity in the regulation of telomere lengths, and many mechanisms still remain a mystery, ready to be solved.
Telomerase activity is under tight physiological regulation in human tissues, where the enzyme is active in only a few adult tissues, such as endothelial cells and lymphocytes, but can be up-regulated in many types of adult stem cells. Telomere shortening has been associated with cellular senescence and the aging process, as well as in major diseases, such as atherosclerosis, obesity, and cardiovascular disease. It is, thus, of high clinical relevance and is often measured in easily-accessible blood monocytes. In contrast, telomerase activity is highly up-regulated and associated with tumorigenesis by maintaining telomeres and, thereby, constituting an important pre-requisite for the ongoing proliferation of cancer cells. Our growing understanding of the mechanisms of telomerase up-regulation during cancer development might help in tumor prognosis and in the development of new anti-cancer treatments and therapies.
In addition, many telomere-independent functions for the telomerase reverse transcriptase protein TERT have been discovered, which add to the complexity of telomerase and the multitude of its functions. It also extends the function of telomerase in its non-canonical role to cell types, such as neurons, and organs, such as brain.
The aim of this Special Issue is to demonstrate and share new results and the growing knowledge about the roles of telomeres and telomerase during processes, such as aging and cancer development.
Dr. Gabriele Saretzki
Guest Editor
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Keywords
- telomere length
- telomerase activity
- TERT
- TERC
- shelterin
- stem cells
- dyskerin
- cellular senescence
- aging
- cancer
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