1
|
Noureen N, Wu S, Lv Y, Yang J, Alfred Yung WK, Gelfond J, Wang X, Koul D, Ludlow A, Zheng S. Integrated analysis of telomerase enzymatic activity unravels an association with cancer stemness and proliferation. Nat Commun 2021; 12:139. [PMID: 33420056 PMCID: PMC7794223 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-020-20474-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/11/2020] [Accepted: 12/03/2020] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Active telomerase is essential for stem cells and most cancers to maintain telomeres. The enzymatic activity of telomerase is related but not equivalent to the expression of TERT, the catalytic subunit of the complex. Here we show that telomerase enzymatic activity can be robustly estimated from the expression of a 13-gene signature. We demonstrate the validity of the expression-based approach, named EXTEND, using cell lines, cancer samples, and non-neoplastic samples. When applied to over 9,000 tumors and single cells, we find a strong correlation between telomerase activity and cancer stemness. This correlation is largely driven by a small population of proliferating cancer cells that exhibits both high telomerase activity and cancer stemness. This study establishes a computational framework for quantifying telomerase enzymatic activity and provides new insights into the relationships among telomerase, cancer proliferation, and stemness.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Nighat Noureen
- Greehey Children's Cancer Research Institute, UT Health San Antonio, San Antonio, TX, USA
- Department of Population Health Sciences, UT Health San Antonio, San Antonio, TX, USA
| | - Shaofang Wu
- Department of Neuro-Oncology, MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Yingli Lv
- Greehey Children's Cancer Research Institute, UT Health San Antonio, San Antonio, TX, USA
| | - Juechen Yang
- Greehey Children's Cancer Research Institute, UT Health San Antonio, San Antonio, TX, USA
| | - W K Alfred Yung
- Department of Neuro-Oncology, MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Jonathan Gelfond
- Department of Population Health Sciences, UT Health San Antonio, San Antonio, TX, USA
| | - Xiaojing Wang
- Greehey Children's Cancer Research Institute, UT Health San Antonio, San Antonio, TX, USA
- Department of Population Health Sciences, UT Health San Antonio, San Antonio, TX, USA
| | - Dimpy Koul
- Department of Neuro-Oncology, MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Andrew Ludlow
- Department of Movement Science, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
| | - Siyuan Zheng
- Greehey Children's Cancer Research Institute, UT Health San Antonio, San Antonio, TX, USA.
- Department of Population Health Sciences, UT Health San Antonio, San Antonio, TX, USA.
| |
Collapse
|