Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
Pivot Concepts:   Target Concepts:
Query: UNIPROT:P04637 (p53)
 77,613 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Constitutive activation of the telomerase is a key step in the development of human cancers. Interferon-gamma (IFN-gamma) signaling induces growth arrest in many tumors through multiple regulatory mechanisms. In this study, we show that IFN-gamma signaling represses telomerase activity and human telomerase reverse transcriptase (hTERT) transcription, and suggest that this signaling is mediated by IRF-1. Ectopic expression of IRF-1 attenuated hTERT promoter activity. Murine embryonic fibroblasts (MEFs) genetically deficient in IRF-1 (IRF-1(-/-)) showed an elevated level (>15 times) of hTERT promoter activity as compared to the hTERT promoter activity of wild-type MEFs. The telomerase activity and hTERT expression in IRF-1(-/-) MEFs were downregulated by IRF-1 transfection. Interestingly, less extent of telomerase repression was observed in HPV E6 and E7 negative, p53 mutant HT-3 cells than in HPV 18 E6 and E7 positive HeLa cells (intact p53). These findings provide evidence that IRF-1 is a potential mediator of IFN-gamma-induced attenuation of telomerase activity and hTERT expression.
 ...
PMID:Interferon regulatory factor-1 (IRF-1) is a mediator for interferon-gamma induced attenuation of telomerase activity and human telomerase reverse transcriptase (hTERT) expression. 1254 59

Telomerase expression is the hallmark of tumor cells in which this ribonucleoprotein complex preserves chromosome integrity by maintaining telomere length and thereby prevents cell death. However, recent data support a role of the combination of p53 and telomerase inactivation in initiating genetic instability that promotes malignant transformation. Through its pleiotropic effects on infected T-cell metabolism, the human T-cell leukemia virus type 1 (HTLV-1) oncoprotein Tax plays a central role in leukemogenesis. Here, we show that Tax inhibits human telomerase reverse transcriptase (hTERT) transcription, which is the rate-limiting factor of telomerase activity. This inhibitory effect, that occurs in competition with c-Myc through a canonical c-Myc binding site within the hTERT promoter, results in a decreased telomerase activity of Tax-expressing cells. This is the first demonstration of hTERT inhibition by an oncogene. Tax, which is only expressed in preleukemic cells, triggers infected T-cell cycle and keeps these cells cycling while inactivating p53. We propose that, in combination with these effects, hTERT repression by Tax at an early phase of carcinogenesis might contribute to the massive ploidy changes associated with the development of HTLV-1-associated malignancies.
 ...
PMID:Inactivation of hTERT transcription by Tax. 1280 80

Malignant transformation from mortal, normal cells to immortal, cancer cells is generally associated with activation of telomerase and subsequent telomere maintenance. A major mechanism to regulate telomerase activity in human cells is transcriptional control of the telomerase catalytic subunit gene, human telomerase reverse transcriptase (hTERT). Several transcription factors, including oncogene products (e.g. c-Myc) and tumor suppressor gene products (e.g. WT1 and p53), are able to control hTERT transcription when over-expressed, although it remains to be determined whether a cancer-associated alteration of these factors is primarily responsible for the hTERT activation during carcinogenic processes. Microcell-mediated chromosome transfer experiments have provided evidence for endogenous factors that function to repress the telomerase activity in normal cells and are inactivated in cancer cells. At least one of those endogenous telomerase repressors, which is encoded by a putative tumor suppressor gene on chromosome 3p, acts through transcriptional repression of the hTERT gene. The hTERT gene is also a target site for viruses frequently associated with human cancers, such as human papillomavirus (HPV) and hepatitis B virus (HBV). HPV E6 protein contributes to keratinocyte immortalization and carcinogenesis through trans-activation of the hTERT gene transcription. In at least some hepatocellular carcinomas, the hTERT gene is a non-random integration site of HBV genome, which activates in cis the hTERT transcription. Thus, a variety of cellular and viral oncogenic mechanisms converge on transcriptional control of the hTERT gene. Regulation of chromatin structure through the modification of nucleosomal histones may mediate the action of these cellular and viral mechanisms. Further elucidation of the hTERT transcriptional regulation, including identification and characterization of the endogenous repressor proteins, should lead to better understanding of the complex regulation of human telomerase in normal and cancer cells and may open up new strategies for anticancer therapy.
 ...
PMID:Transcriptional regulation of the telomerase hTERT gene as a target for cellular and viral oncogenic mechanisms. 1280 29

The catalytic component of human telomerase reverse transcriptase (hTERT) is not expressed in most primary somatic human cells, whereas the majority of cancer cells reactivate telomerase by transcriptional up-regulation of hTERT. Several studies demonstrated that the hTERT promoter can be used to restrict gene expression of E1-deleted replication defective adenoviral vectors to telomerase-positive cancer cells. In this study, a conditionally replicating adenovirus (hTERT-Ad) expressing E1A genes under control of a 255-bp hTERT-promoter was constructed. Additionally, an internal ribosomal entry site-enhanced green fluorescent protein cassette was inserted downstream of the E1B locus to monitor viral replication in vivo. Adenoviral replication of hTERT-Ad and enhancement of enhanced green fluorescent protein expression could be observed in all investigated telomerase-positive tumor cell lines. In contrast, hTERT-Ad infection of telomerase-negative primary human hepatocytes did not result in significant replication. The capability of hTERT-Ad to induce cytopathic effects in tumor cells was comparable with that of adenovirus wild type and significantly higher compared with ONYX-015, regardless of the p53 status of the tumor cells. Single application of low-dose hTERT-Ad to tumor xenografts led to significant inhibition of tumor growth, confirming the potential therapeutic value of conditionally replicative adenoviral vectors. These in vivo experiments also revealed that hTERT-Ad-mediated oncolysis was more efficient than ONYX-015 treatment. These results demonstrate that expression of E1A under transcriptional control of the hTERT promoter is sufficient for effective telomerase-dependent adenovirus replication as a promising perspective for the treatment of the majority of epithelial tumors.
 ...
PMID:A telomerase-dependent conditionally replicating adenovirus for selective treatment of cancer. 3032 61

The papillomavirus E6 protein binds and directs the ubiquitin-dependent degradation of the p53 tumor suppressor protein. Independent of this p53-degradative function, however, E6 induces cellular telomerase activity. This increase in enzyme activity reflects E6-enhanced transcription of the human telomerase reverse transcriptase (hTERT) catalytic subunit, but the molecular basis for this transactivation is unknown. In the present study, we demonstrate that E6/Myc interactions regulate hTERT gene expression. Mad protein, a specific antagonist of Myc, repressed E6-mediated transactivation of the hTERT promoter and this repression was relieved by Myc overexpression. The proximal Myc/ Max-binding element (E-box) in the hTERT promoter was the major determinant of both E6 and Myc responsiveness in keratinocytes. E6 did not alter Myc protein expression or Myc/Max association, and the induction of hTERT by Myc/E6 was independent of Myc phosphorylation at Thr-58/Ser-62 within the transactivation domain. However, immunoprecipitation studies demonstrated that endogenous Myc protein coprecipitated with E6 protein and chromatin immunoprecipitation analyses demonstrated that both E6 and Myc proteins bound to a minimal 295-bp hTERT promoter. Only the "high-risk" E6 proteins bound to the hTERT promoter, consistent with their preferential ability to induce telomerase. The observation that E6 associates with Myc complexes and activates a Myc-responsive gene identifies a mechanism by which this oncogene can modulate cell proliferation and differentiation.
 ...
PMID:Human papillomavirus E6 and Myc proteins associate in vivo and bind to and cooperatively activate the telomerase reverse transcriptase promoter. 1282 82

Telomeres are specialized structures at the end of eukaryotic chromosomes that in vertebrates constain hundreds to thousands of tandem repeats of the sequence TTAGGG. In most human somatic cells, telomeres shorten with each cell division, eventually triggering an irreversible arrest of proliferation called cellular senescence. These observations have led to a model in which telomere length reflects the mitotic history of somatic cells. Further support for this hypothesis has come from the discovery of telomerase, a unique reverse transcriptase ribonucleoprotein that has the ability to extend 3' end of telomeres. In fibroblasts, senescence is induced by telomere attrition and depends on p53 and pRb pathways triggered by one or a few critically short telomeres. Previous studies have shown that the replicative life span of various primary human cells can be prolonged by transduction of the telomerase reverse transcriptase (hTERT) gene. The hTERT expressing cells proliferate indefinitely, without undergoing any changes associated with transformation to malignancy. Rapid progress has been made towards the goal of using tumor-specific cytolytic CD8+ T lymphocytes for the immunotherapy of cancer. These cells can be expanded in vitro and, in principle, could be used for adoptive immunotherapy. One of the major problems that remains to be solved is the finite life span of normal human T lymphocytes. In an attempt to overcome this barrier three groups have introduced hTERT cDNA into human T lymphocytes and monitored its effect on their life span. In two of these studies, hTERT significantly extended the replicative life span of CD8+ T clones, whereas this was not the case in the third study using bulk T lymphocytes. Possible explanations for these discordant results are that better growth conditions avoided culture-induced stress in the study with clones, or that clones had undergone alterations leading, for example, to the inactivation of the pRb pathway during their derivation.
 ...
PMID:[Telomerase, elixir of life for human cells?]. 1283 17

Many cancer and immortal cells exhibit telomerase activity that stabilizes telomere lengths, possibly contributing to cell immortality and carcinogenesis. The aim of this study was to elucidate the clinicopathological relationship between telomerase activity and telomerase reverse transcriptase subunit (hTERT) status in non small cell lung cancer. hTERT status in non small cell lung cancer using telomeric repeat amplification protocol (TRAP) and RT-PCR assay, respectively. Telomerase activity and hTERT were detected in 85.7 and 80.3% of cancerous tissues, respectively. Telomerase activity does not correlate with clinicopathological variables. However, there was an association between p53-correlated expression and hTERT negative status. Lung cancer patients without telomerase activity survived for a significantly longer period than those with telomerase activity. In addition, hTERT was not associated with the prognosis. TERT expression did not correlate well with any clinical parameter. Reactivated telomerase activity may be a poor prognostic factor in NSCLCs.
 ...
PMID:Loss of telomerase activity may be a potential favorable prognostic marker in lung carcinomas. 1287 79

To investigate the relationship among 8-OH-dG and the development of human lung cancer and cancer related genes, an 8-OH-dG-specific monoclonal antibody and biotin-streptavidin immuno-staining were used to detect the 8-OH-dG in 150 cases of human lung cancer tissues, 120 adjacent lung tissues without cancer cells, 40 benign lung lesions and 40 normal lung tissues. The expressions of P53, C-MYC, K-RAS, BCL-2 and hTERT(human telomerase reverse transcriptase) were determined by immunohistochemistry and the relationship among the 8-OH-dG and these genes was analyzed. The 8-OH-dG were positive in 139 of 150 (92.7%) lung cancer specimens, and the percentage of adduct labeling cell in lung cancer specimens was (24.00 +/- 25.11)% (mean +/- SE). 21 of 120 (17.5%) adjacent lung tissues were adduct positive, and the percentage of adduct labeling cell was 2.42 +/- 5.98%. 4 of 40 (10.0%) benign lung lesions were adduct positive, and the percentage of adduct labeling cell was 0.80 +/- 1.30%, whereas 2 of 40 (5.0%) normal lung tissues were weak positive with 8-oh-dG, and the percentage of adduct labeling cell in this group was (0.34 +/- 1.01)%. The level of 8-OH-dG in lung cancer tissues was significantly higher than that of adjacent lung tissues, benign lung lesions and normal lungs (P < 0.01). The lung cancer patients were stratified by sex, age, cell types and smoking history, but these characteristics were not correlated with the level of 8-OH-dG. In the investigation of the relationship between the 8-OH-dG and five cancer related genes, higher 8-OH-dG levels were observed in lung cancer patients with over-expression of K-RAS and BCL-2 than those of negative expressed patients (P-value were 0.035 and 0.034 respectively), whereas the expression of P53, C-MYC and hTERT were not correlated with level of 8-OH-dG. 8-OH-dG was an important biomarker that may reflect the oxidative DNA damages of cells, and 8-OH-dG may affect K-RAS and BCL-2 genes in the carcinogenesis of lung cancer.
 ...
PMID:[Study of 8-OH-dG and its correlation with several cancer related gene in lung cancer tissues]. 1453 88

The human endometrium is a dynamic tissue, the proliferative activity of which dramatically changes throughout the menstrual cycle, with exquisite regulation by sex-steroid hormones. Primary endometrial epithelial cells fall into senescence within 2 weeks when cultured on plastic dishes, and more complete understanding of endometrial biology has been delayed because of, in part, a lack of an in vitro culture model for endometrial epithelial cells. Our goal was to establish immortalized human endometrial glandular cells that retain the normal functions and characteristics of the primary cells. Because the Rb/p16 and p53 pathways are known to be critical elements of epithelial senescence in early passages, we used human papillomavirus E6/E7 to target these pathways. The combination of human papillomavirus-16 E6/E7 expression and telomerase activation by the introduction of human telomerase reverse transcriptase (hTERT) led to successful immortalization of the endometrial glandular cells. E6/E7 expression alone was sufficient to extend their life span more than 20 population doublings, but the telomerase activation was further required to enable the cells to pass through the subsequent replicative senescence at 40 population doublings. Isolated immortalized cells contained no chromosomal abnormalities or only nonclonal aberrations, retained responsiveness to sex-steroid hormones, exhibited glandular structure on three-dimensional culture, and lacked transformed phenotypes on soft agar or in nude mice. These findings support the notion that both Rb inactivation/p53 inactivation and telomerase activation are necessary to immortalize endometrial epithelial cells, but additional factors are required for endometrial carcinogenesis. Our established cell lines show great promise for investigation of hormone functions, endometrial biology, and endometrial carcinogenesis.
 ...
PMID:Successful immortalization of endometrial glandular cells with normal structural and functional characteristics. 1463

Keratinocytes undergo a finite number of divisions in culture before senescing. The high-risk human papillomavirus (HPV) E6 and E7 oncoproteins prevent keratinocyte senescence and extend life span by interacting with p53 and pRb, respectively, and also by transcriptionally activating the human telomerase reverse transcriptase (hTERT) gene, which encodes the catalytic subunit of telomerase. We correlated telomerase activity, which was measured by a highly sensitive and quantitative real-time quantitative-PCR-based telomeric repeat amplification protocol assay, with telomere length and the expression of hTERT, p16(INK4a), and HPV-16 E6 and E7 in keratinocytes grown under two culture conditions. Primary human foreskin keratinocytes (HFKs) cultured in keratinocyte serum-free medium on plastic senesced at approximately 13 population doublings (PDs). Senescence was accompanied by a dramatic increase in p16(INK4A) levels, a marked decrease in telomerase, and only a slight decrease in telomere length. In contrast, HFKs grown in F medium on 3T3 fibroblast feeders maintained elevated telomerase and lower levels of p16(INK4A) for 60 PDs before senescing approximately 81 PDs. E7 was shown to act synergistically with E6 to super induce telomerase expression in a feeder environment-dependent manner. Culture of both HFKs and HFK/16E6E7 cells in the feeder environment significantly increased the number of doublings that these cells could undergo without a significant reduction in telomere length. Finally, transfer of either HFKs or HFK/16E6E7 cells from plastic to the feeder fibroblast culture system significantly induced telomerase activity. This induction in telomerase was fully reversible and largely attributable to the medium. Our results suggest that the influence of keratinocyte culture conditions on the expression of telomerase and p16(INK4A) and on telomere maintenance is responsible, at least partially, for the differences in proliferative capacity, senescence, and HPV-keratinocyte interactions seen in the two culture systems.
 ...
PMID:Keratinocyte growth conditions modulate telomerase expression, senescence, and immortalization by human papillomavirus type 16 E6 and E7 oncogenes. 1463 8


<< Previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Next >>