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PMID: 10854032 Published · ppublish English Journal Article Research Support, U.S. Gov't, P.H.S.

The catalytic subunit of telomerase is expressed in developing brain neurons and serves a cell survival-promoting function.

Journal of molecular neuroscience : MN ·Vol. 14 ·No. 1-2 ·2000-00-00 ·Pages 3-15

Fu W, Killen M, Culmsee C, Dhar S, Pandita TK, Mattson MP

Abstract

Telomerase, a specialized reverse transcriptase (RT) linked to cell immortalization and cancer, has been thought not to be expressed in postmitotic cells. We now report that telomerase activity and its essential catalytic subunit, telomerase reverse transcriptase (TERT), are expressed in neurons in the brains of rodents during embryonic and early postnatal development, and are subsequently downregulated. Suppression of TERT expression in cultured embryonic hippocampal neurons increases their vulnerability to apoptosis and excitotoxicity. Overexpression of TERT in PC12 cells suppresses apoptosis induced by trophic factor withdrawal. TERT exerts its anti-apoptotic action at an early stage of the cell death process prior to mitochondrial dysfunction and caspase activation. TERT may serve a neuron survival-promoting function in the developing brain, and downregulation of TERT in the adult brain may contribute to increased neuronal vulnerability in various age-related neurodegenerative disorders.

MeSH Terms
Aging Animals Apoptosis Brain/embryology,enzymology,growth & development Caspases/metabolism Catalytic Domain Cell Survival Cells, Cultured Embryonic and Fetal Development Gene Expression Regulation, Developmental Gene Expression Regulation, Enzymologic Macromolecular Substances Mice Mitochondria/metabolism Neurons/cytology,enzymology RNA-Directed DNA Polymerase/genetics Rats Telomerase/chemistry,genetics,metabolism
Chemicals
Macromolecular Substances RNA-Directed DNA Polymerase Telomerase Caspases
Authors & Affiliations
6 authors, click to expand affiliations / ORCID
Fu W
Sanders Brown Research Center on Aging, University of Kentucky, Lexington 40536, USA.
Killen M
Culmsee C
Dhar S
Pandita T K
Mattson M P
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Article Info
Journal
Journal of molecular neuroscience : MN
Abbr.
J Mol Neurosci
ISSN
0895-8696
DOI
10.1385/JMN:14:1-2:003
Published
2000-00-00
Pages
3-15
Language
English
Region
United States
NLM ID
9002991
Subset
IM
External Links
PubMed source DOI: 10.1385/JMN:14:1-2:003 View journal details
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