QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced] Author: Keyword(s):
Home     Help     Feedback     Subscriptions     Archive     Search     Table of Contents

First published online 13 June 2006
doi: 10.1242/jcs.03001

This Article Figures Only Full Text Full Text (PDF) Supplementary Material All Versions of this Article: jcs.03001v1 119/13/2797    most recent Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Wu, Y.-L. Articles by Ségal-Bendirdjian, E. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Wu, Y.-L. Articles by Ségal-Bendirdjian, E.

Immunodetection of human telomerase reverse-transcriptase (hTERT) re-appraised: nucleolin and telomerase cross paths

¹ INSERM U685, Hôpital Saint-Louis, Institut d'Hématologie, 1 avenue Claude Vellefaux, 75010 Paris, France
² Department of Pathophysiology Key Laboratory of Cell Differentiation and Apoptosis of Ministry of Education, Shanghai Jiao-Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai 200025, P. R. China
³ Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Medical and Health Science Center, University of Debrecen, Nagyerdei krt. 98, 4012 Debrecen, Hungary
⁴ Shanghai Institute of Hematology, Ruijin Hospital, Shanghai Jiao-Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai 200025, P. R. China

^* Author for correspondence (e-mail: segal{at}stlouis.inserm.fr)

Accepted 29 March 2006

The involvement of telomerase in cellular immortalization and senescence has often been assessed by means of telomerase expression at the RNA level and quantification of telomerase activity by the telomeric repeat amplification protocol assay. However, these methods either neglected the existence of various telomerase splice variants, or ignored the nonconventional functions of telomerase independent of its ability to elongate and maintain telomere length. Immunodetection of telomerase is now being recognized as a necessary approach to precisely elucidate its roles in oncogenesis and senescence. A few antibodies directed against the catalytic subunit of the human telomerase (hTERT) are currently used but their specificity is not always demonstrated. A survey of the literature showed inconsistencies and led us to comparatively re-evaluate the most frequently used antibodies. Surprisingly, mass spectrometry, two-dimensional gel analysis and immunofluorescent experiments revealed that the most frequently used hTERT immunoprobe, a mouse monoclonal antibody that was claimed to be directed against an hTERT protein epitope, in fact recognizes nucleolin rather than telomerase. Our findings have interesting implications regarding the biology of nucleolin and telomerase in the context of pathophysiological investigations recently carried out.

Key words: Telomerase, Nucleolin, Immunodetection

This article has been cited by other articles:

				D.K. Hapangama, M.A. Turner, J.A. Drury, S. Quenby, G. Saretzki, C. Martin-Ruiz, and T. Von Zglinicki Endometriosis is associated with aberrant endometrial expression of telomerase and increased telomere length Hum. Reprod., July 1, 2008; 23(7): 1511 - 1519. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				S. Ahmed, J. F. Passos, M. J. Birket, T. Beckmann, S. Brings, H. Peters, M. A. Birch-Machin, T. von Zglinicki, and G. Saretzki Telomerase does not counteract telomere shortening but protects mitochondrial function under oxidative stress J. Cell Sci., April 1, 2008; 121(7): 1046 - 1053. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]