Telomerase repeat amplification protocol (TRAP) activity upon recombinant expression and purification of human telomerase in a bacterial system

Catalytic Hairpin Assembly-Assisted Rolling Circle Amplification for High-Sensitive Telomerase Activity Detection

Telomerase is a promising biomarker and a potential therapeutic target of malignant tumors. Reliable, facile, and sensitive telomerase activity analysis is of vital importance for both early diagnosis and therapy of malignant tumors. Herein, we proposed a novel fluorescent assay termed catalytic hairpin assembly-assisted rolling circle amplification (CAR) for both in vitro and in situ high-sensitive telomerase activity detection. In the presence of active telomerase, the extension of a designed telomerase primer was limited to five bases (GGGTT), thus forming short telomerase products. Afterward, the obtained telomerase extension products cyclized Padlock and subsequently initiated the rolling circle amplification (RCA). In order to maintain a higher sensitivity, an ingeniously designed catalytic hairpin assembly (CHA) was attached for both signal amplification and result readout. The highlights of the CAR method were concluded as follows: (i) dual signal amplification from CHA and RCA ensures high sensitivity and (ii) the CAR method has the potential for both in vitro and intracellular imaging of telomerase activity. We believe that the CAR method would be of great potential for the diagnosis and therapy of various human diseases.

Telomerase Regulation from Beginning to the End

The vast body of literature regarding human telomere maintenance is a true testament to the importance of understanding telomere regulation in both normal and diseased states. In this review, our goal was simple: tell the telomerase story from the biogenesis of its parts to its maturity as a complex and function at its site of action, emphasizing new developments and how they contribute to the foundational knowledge of telomerase and telomere biology.