Correlation of human telomerase reverse transcriptase single nucleotide polymorphisms with in vitro fertilisation outcomes.
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ABSTRACT:
SUBMITTER: Dai K
PROVIDER: S-EPMC6439048 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Mar
REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature
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Project description:Telomeres, the repetitive sequences at chromosomal ends, protect intact chromosomes. Telomeres progressively shorten through successive rounds of cell divisions, and critically shortened telomeres trigger senescence and apoptosis. The enzyme that elongates telomeres and maintains their structure is known as telomerase. The catalytic subunit of this enzyme (telomerase reverse transcriptase [TERT]) is expressed at a high level in malignant cells, but at a very low level in normal cells. Although telomerase activity was long believed to be the only function of TERT, emerging evidence indicates that TERT plays roles beyond telomeres. For example, TERT contributes to stem cell maintenance and cell reprogramming processes in a manner independent of its canonical function. Even some types of splice variants that lack the telomerase catalytic domains exhibit the functions in a manner that does not depend on telomerase activity. We recently demonstrated that the RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRP) activity of TERT is involved in regulation of gene silencing and heterochromatic transcription. Moreover, TERT RdRP activity is mediated by a newly identified complex, distinct from the authentic telomerase complex, that plays a role in cancer stem cells in a telomere maintenance independent manner. TERT has attracted interest as a molecular target for anticancer treatment, but previous efforts aimed at developing novel therapeutic strategies focused only on the canonical function of TERT. However, accumulating evidence about the non-canonical functions of TERT led us to speculate that the functions other than telomerase might be therapeutic targets as well. In this review, we discuss the non-canonical functions of TERT and their potential applications for anticancer treatment.
| S-EPMC4714691 | biostudies-literature
Project description:BackgroundTelomerase is a reverse transcriptase that maintains the telomeres of linear chromosomes and preserves genomic integrity. The core components are a catalytic protein subunit, the telomerase reverse transcriptase (TERT), and an RNA subunit, the telomerase RNA (TR). Telomerase is unique in its ability to catalyze processive DNA synthesis, which is facilitated by telomere-specific DNA-binding domains in TERT called anchor sites. A conserved glutamine residue in the TERT N-terminus is important for anchor site interactions in lower eukaryotes. The significance of this residue in higher eukaryotes, however, has not been investigated.Methodology/principal findingsTo understand the significance of this residue in higher eukaryotes, we performed site-directed mutagenesis on human TERT (hTERT) Q169 to create neutral (Q169A), conservative (Q169N), and non-conservative (Q169D) mutant proteins. We show that these mutations severely compromise telomerase activity in vitro and in vivo. The functional defects are not due to abrogated interactions with hTR or telomeric ssDNA. However, substitution of hTERT Q169 dramatically impaired the ability of telomerase to incorporate nucleotides at the second position of the template. Furthermore, Q169 mutagenesis altered the relative strength of hTERT-telomeric ssDNA interactions, which identifies Q169 as a novel residue in hTERT required for optimal primer binding. Proteolysis experiments indicate that Q169 substitution alters the protease-sensitivity of the hTERT N-terminus, indicating that a conformational change in this region of hTERT is likely critical for catalytic function.Conclusions/significanceWe provide the first detailed evidence regarding the biochemical and cellular roles of an evolutionarily-conserved Gln residue in higher eukaryotes. Collectively, our results indicate that Q169 is needed to maintain the hTERT N-terminus in a conformation that is necessary for optimal enzyme-primer interactions and nucleotide incorporation. We show that Q169 is critical for the structure and function of human telomerase, thereby identifying a novel residue in hTERT that may be amenable to therapeutic intervention.
| S-EPMC2744565 | biostudies-literature
Project description:BackgroundSeveral recent studies have provided evidence that polymorphisms in the telomerase reverse transcriptase (TERT) gene sequence are associated with cancer development, but a comprehensive synopsis is not available. We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of the available molecular epidemiology data regarding the association between TERT locus polymorphisms and predisposition to cancer.MethodsA systematic review of the English literature was conducted by searching PubMed, Embase, Cancerlit, Google Scholar, and ISI Web of Knowledge databases for studies on associations between TERT locus polymorphisms and cancer risk. Random-effects meta-analysis was performed to pool per-allele odds ratios for TERT locus polymorphisms and risk of cancer, and between-study heterogeneity and potential bias sources (eg, publication and chasing bias) were assessed. Because the TERT locus includes the cleft lip and palate transmembrane 1-like (CLPTM1L) gene, which is in linkage disequilibrium with TERT, CLPTM1L polymorphisms were also analyzed. Cumulative evidence for polymorphisms with statistically significant associations was graded as "strong," "moderate," and "weak" according to the Venice criteria. The joint population attributable risk was calculated for polymorphisms with strong evidence of association.ResultsEighty-five studies enrolling 490 901 subjects and reporting on 494 allelic contrasts were retrieved. Data were available on 67 TERT locus polymorphisms and 24 tumor types, for a total of 221 unique combinations of polymorphisms and cancer types. Upon meta-analysis, a statistically significant association with the risk of any cancer type was found for 22 polymorphisms. Strong, moderate, and weak cumulative evidence for association with at least one tumor type was demonstrated for 11, 9, and 14 polymorphisms, respectively. For lung cancer, which was the most studied tumor type, the estimated joint population attributable risk for three polymorphisms (TERT rs2736100, intergenic rs4635969, and CLPTM1L rs402710) was 41%. Strong evidence for lack of association was identified for five polymorphisms in three tumor types.ConclusionsTo our knowledge, this is the largest collection of data for associations between TERT locus polymorphisms and cancer risk. Our findings support the hypothesis that genetic variability in this genomic region can modulate cancer susceptibility in humans.
| S-EPMC3611810 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Telomerase maintains the simple sequence repeats at chromosome ends, protecting cells from genomic rearrangement, proliferative senescence and death. The telomerase reverse transcriptase (TERT) and telomerase RNA (TER) alone can assemble into active enzyme in a heterologous cell extract, but the physiological process of telomerase biogenesis is more complex. The endogenous accumulation of Tetrahymena thermophila TERT and TER requires an additional telomerase holoenzyme protein, p65. Here, we reconstitute this cellular pathway for telomerase ribonucleoprotein biogenesis in vitro. We demonstrate that tandem RNA interaction domains in p65 recognize the sequence of the TER 3' stem. Notably, the p65-TER complex recruits TERT much more efficiently than does TER alone. Using bacterially expressed p65 and TERT polypeptides, we show that p65 enhances TERT-TER interaction by a mechanism involving a conserved bulge in the protein-bridging TER molecule. These findings reveal a pathway for telomerase holoenzyme biogenesis that preassembles TER for TERT recruitment.
| S-EPMC2913471 | biostudies-other
Project description:This SuperSeries is composed of the SubSeries listed below.
2024-07-11 | GSE145659 | GEO
Project description:Human telomerase reverse transcriptase (hTERT), the catalytic subunit of human telomerase, contains conserved motifs common to retroviral reverse transcriptases and telomerases. Within the C motif of hTERT is the Leu866-Val867-Asp868-Asp869 tetrapeptide that includes a catalytically essential aspartate dyad. Site-directed mutagenesis of Tyr183 and Met184 residues in HIV-1 RT, residues analogous to Leu866 and Val867, revealed that they are key determinants of nucleotide binding, processivity and fidelity. In this study, we show that substitutions at Val867 lead to significant changes in overall enzyme activity and telomere repeat extension rate, but have little effect on polymerase processivity. All Val867 substitutions examined (Ala, Met, Thr) led to reduced repeat extension rates, ranging from approximately 20 to 50% of the wild-type rate. Reconstitution of V867M hTERT and telomerase RNAs (TRs) with mutated template sequences revealed the effect on extension rate was associated with a template copying defect specific to template A residues. Furthermore, the Val867 hTERT mutants also displayed increased nucleotide incorporation fidelity, implicating Val867 as a determinant of telomerase fidelity. These findings suggest that by evolving to have a valine at position 867, the wild-type hTERT protein may have partially compromised polymerase fidelity for optimal and rapid repeat synthesis.
| S-EPMC1851649 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Background and aimsHepatitis B virus (HBV) integrations are common in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). In particular, alterations of the telomerase reverse transcriptase (TERT) gene by HBV integrations are frequent; however, the molecular mechanism and functional consequence underlying TERT HBV integration are unclear.Approach and resultsWe adopted a targeted sequencing strategy to survey HBV integrations in human HBV-associated HCCs (n = 95). HBV integration at the TERT promoter was frequent (35.8%, n = 34/95) in HCC tumors and was associated with increased TERT mRNA expression and more aggressive tumor behavior. To investigate the functional importance of various integrated HBV components, we employed different luciferase reporter constructs and found that HBV enhancer I (EnhI) was the key viral component leading to TERT activation on integration at the TERT promoter. In addition, the orientation of the HBV integration at the TERT promoter further modulated the degree of TERT transcription activation in HCC cell lines and patients' HCCs. Furthermore, we performed array-based small interfering RNA library functional screening to interrogate the potential major transcription factors that physically interacted with HBV and investigated the cis-activation of host TERT gene transcription on viral integration. We identified a molecular mechanism of TERT activation through the E74 like ETS transcription factor 4 (ELF4), which normally could drive HBV gene transcription. ELF4 bound to the chimeric HBV EnhI at the TERT promoter, resulting in telomerase activation. Stable knockdown of ELF4 significantly reduced the TERT expression and sphere-forming ability in HCC cells.ConclusionsOur results reveal a cis-activating mechanism harnessing host ELF4 and HBV integrated at the TERT promoter and uncover how TERT HBV-integrated HCCs may achieve TERT activation in hepatocarcinogenesis.
| S-EPMC7898544 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Metastasis is the main culprit of the great majority of cancerrelated deaths. However, the complicated process of the invasion-metastasis cascade remains the least understood aspect of cancer biology. Telomerase plays a pivotal role in bypassing cellular senescence and sustaining the cancer progression by maintaining telomere homeostasis and genomic integrity. Telomerase reverse transcriptase (TERT) exerts a series of fundamental functions that are independent of its enzymatic cellular activity, including proliferation, inflammation, epithelia-mesenchymal transition (EMT), angiogenesis, DNA repair, and gene expression. Accumulating evidence indicates that TERT may facilitate most steps of the invasion-metastasis cascade. In this review, we summarize important advances that have revealed some of the mechanisms by which TERT facilitates tumor metastasis, providing an update on the non-canonical functions of telomerase beyond telomere maintaining. [BMB Reports 2020; 53(9): 458-465].
| S-EPMC7526981 | biostudies-literature
Project description:In the fission yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe, centromeric heterochromatin is maintained by an RNA-directed RNA polymerase complex (RDRC) and the RNA-induced transcriptional silencing (RITS) complex in a manner that depends on the generation of short interfering RNA. In association with the telomerase RNA component (TERC), the telomerase reverse transcriptase (TERT) forms telomerase and counteracts telomere attrition, and without TERC, TERT has been implicated in the regulation of heterochromatin at locations distinct from telomeres. Here, we describe a complex composed of human TERT (hTERT), Brahma-related gene 1 (BRG1), and nucleostemin (NS) that contributes to heterochromatin maintenance at centromeres and transposons. This complex produced double-stranded RNAs homologous to centromeric alpha-satellite (alphoid) repeat elements and transposons that were processed into small interfering RNAs targeted to these heterochromatic regions. These small interfering RNAs promoted heterochromatin assembly and mitotic progression in a manner dependent on the RNA interference machinery. These observations implicate the hTERT/BRG1/NS (TBN) complex in heterochromatin assembly at particular sites in the mammalian genome.
| S-EPMC3993606 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Human telomerase reverse transcriptase (hTERT) is the core subunit of human telomerase and plays important roles in human cancers. Aberrant expression of hTERT is closely associated with tumorigenesis, cancer cell stemness maintaining, cell proliferation, apoptosis inhibition, senescence evasion and metastasis. The molecular basis of hTERT regulation is highly complicated and consists of various layers. A deep and full-scale comprehension of the regulatory mechanisms of hTERT is pivotal in understanding the pathogenesis and searching for therapeutic approaches. In this review, we summarize the recent advances regarding the diverse regulatory mechanisms of hTERT, including the transcriptional (promoter mutation, promoter region methylation and histone acetylation), post-transcriptional (mRNA alternative splicing and non-coding RNAs) and post-translational levels (phosphorylation and ubiquitination), which may provide novel perspectives for further translational diagnosis or therapeutic strategies targeting hTERT.
| S-EPMC6560729 | biostudies-literature