Elizabeth Blackburn (UCSF) Part 2: Telomeres and Telomerase in Human Stem Cells and in Cancer

www.ibiology.org/genetics-and...
Telomerase, a specialized ribonucleprotein reverse transcriptase, is important for long-term eukaryotic cell proliferation and genomic stability, because it replenishes the DNA at telomeres. Thus depending on cell type telomerase partially or completely (depending on cell type) counteracts the progressive shortening of telomeres that otherwise occurs. Telomerase is highly active in many human malignancies, and a potential target for anti-cancer approaches. Furthermore, recent collaborative studies have shown the relationship between accelerated telomere shortening and life stress and that low telomerase levels are associated with six prominent risk factors for cardiovascular disease.

[@drranjitkumarsahoo5735]

Remember she got Nobel prize in 2009 for this work. Thanks. Its too good.

[@willisscott3107]

Elizabeth Blackburn is a hero!!!

[@maskedmarvyl4774]

It's been nine years since this presentation; yet I have seen no cancer treatment therapies based on this amazing work. Why is that?

[@williamaaronberryiii6538]

I have seen my grandson return from state 4 cancer and many others! You may be looking in the wrong places.

[@petercoderch589]

SENS from Aubrey De Grey is working on it, but shutting down telomerase has proven to create a host of problems, such as accelerated immunosenescense, significant loss of bone and muscle mass, lung fibrosis and accelerated ageing of the arteries. Telomeres are a catch 21: if they are too long, it mighty increase the odds of cancer. But they get too short, organs start to fall apart due to a lack of new cells, and the body goes into massive inflammatory mode as cells goes senescent and the body indentifies the telomere-less cells as damaged and triggers an inflammatory response. Unfortunately, there are no quick fixes for ageing. The system if wired with endless checks-and-balances that go haywire if you try to tinker with it.

[@xniyazi]

Then, work on it. My question: is Trmp a perfect leader?

[@maskedmarvyl4774]

@@xniyazi , I'm not quite sure why your linking my comment to this video to "Is Trmp (sic) a perfect leader?"

[@whitewolf1061]

@@petercoderch589 adults contain naturally occurring cells that express telomerase. They’re called endogenous adult telomerase positive stem cells.

[@arnsteinholm7372]

NOBEL PRIZE - In 1980, Elizabeth Blackburn discovered that telomeres have a particular DNA. In 1982, together with Jack Szostak, she further proved that this DNA prevents chromosomes from being broken down. Elizabeth Blackburn and Carol Greider discovered the enzyme telomerase, which produces the telomeres' DNA, in 1984.

[@charleshughbryan5603]

Ecredable research !! Thank you for posting this and encouraging and stirring young minds to finally kill cancer !!

[@lidarman2]

Thanks for posting this.

[@RandomNooby]

Truly Awesome work, thank you. But what goes through the minds of the people who down-voted this? Here is some break through science, with simply explained incontrovertible proof that is a stepping stone toward many positive things in the future, including ending some cancers. Is it the hair style or something they disapprove of.

[@lassusprophetam8209]

This is a good example of cancer of the doctor's mind here she could explore how to make telomerase make humans live forever and instead she tries to kill cancer cells.

[@biounam2011]

Amazing!!

[@dimenbarang7595]

Terrific

[@gladheateher4now]

Hi so how would astragalus effect this sequence ? it it truelly a longitivity reaction ? Thanks for your video and a responce

[@erwinrogers9470]

Love it 🔥

[@salvadorhirth1641]

When I read about telomeres in the 1990's, I asked myself, how the shortening of telomeres stops cell proliferation, my first inkling was that a possible globular protein ( encoded by the repeats TTAGGG, that would mean a protein or polypeptide alternating Leucine and Glycine, that would be built progressively smaller, as the TTAGGG repeats shrink) could have an allosteric effect ( it would work as a trigger on another protein or enzyme not yet discovered and such protein would be essential for DNA polymerases to work). Then I stopped thinking about that hypothesis for years. Now I am a bit curious again...

[@salvadorhirth1641]

If telomeres are non coding regions of DNA, my hypothesis must be wrong...

[@ojasdeshmukh693]

@@salvadorhirth1641 The implication of telomere maintenance could actually help out here.

[@d3aaaba]

can someone tell me where can I find the references of all the date which have beens presented?

[@sidmichael1158]

How do we lengthen telomeres?

[@kipling1957]

Still no explanation of what is selecting against the expression of telomerase in adult somatic cells given its protective effects against cell senescence and apoptosis. It seems like a very obvious question to ask.

[@kathyschamerhorn6138]

From what I've gathered it's "alternative splicing of htert pre-mrna transcriptions". The alternative splicing produces non-functional htert mrna's, which produce non-functional htert, which produces non-functional telomerase enzymes. The alternative splicing is regulated by something? which controls the quantity of the enzymes in different cells.

[@kipling1957]

@@kathyschamerhorn6138 Interesting, and thanks. I haven't thought about this for some time. Whatever the regulating factor, I have an untested hypothesis that it corresponds to the Heyflick limit. None of this is my area of expertise so this is just wild conjecture.

[@StephenGillie]

If DNA is how cells think (process data about the world around them into information and plans), then is this brainwashing them?

[@lassusprophetam8209]

Forget about cancer cells don't ever think about them again obviously you could stick a stiletto heel in them the way you did with the other cells and stop them from growing.

[@kathyschamerhorn6138]

Do you happen to know specifically how many telomerase enzymes are required to be in a cell before it begins to behave like an undifferentiated stem cell? I suspect achieving this could "possibly" activate tissue regeneration which could "possibly" restore your youth to you. (Then again it could kill you somehow. You scientists should experiment on animals to find out what this does.)

[@arastougharibi6038]

is there a way to elongate telomeres in human cells?

[@martasolty9215]

Many college labs have managed to inject viruses into humans that contain telomerase in order to spread it into cells, and then kill the virus off once the telomerase has reached its target