Multiple Actions of Telomerase Reverse Transcriptase in Cell Death Regulation

• Published in: Biomedicines Vol. 11; no. 4; p. 1091
• Main Authors: Palamarchuk, Anastasia I, Kovalenko, Elena I, Streltsova, Maria A
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland MDPI AG 01-04-2023; MDPI
• Subjects: Apoptosis; Ataxia; Biochemistry; Cancer; Cell cycle; Cell death; Cell survival; Cellular stress response; Chromosomes; DNA damage; DNA repair; Gene regulation; Genes; Genetic aspects; Genetic transcription; Genomes; Intracellular signalling; Kinases; Localization; Lymphocytes; Medical prognosis; Metabolism; Mitochondria; Proteins; Reverse transcription; Review; RNA-directed DNA polymerase; Signal transduction; Somatic cells; stress; Telomerase; Telomerase reverse transcriptase; Telomeres; TERT; Canada; stress; telomerase; TERT; cell death; gene regulation; survival; telomeres; apoptosis; telomerase reverse transcriptase
• ISSN: 2227-9059; 2227-9059
• DOI: 10.3390/biomedicines11041091

Telomerase reverse transcriptase (TERT), a core part of telomerase, has been known for a long time only for its telomere lengthening function by reverse transcription of RNA template. Currently, TERT is considered as an intriguing link between multiple signaling pathways. The diverse intracellular localization of TERT corresponds to a wide range of functional activities. In addition to the canonical function of protecting chromosome ends, TERT by itself or as a part of the telomerase complex participates in cell stress responses, gene regulation and mitochondria functioning. Upregulation of TERT expression and increased telomerase activity in cancer and somatic cells relate to improved survival and persistence of such cells. In this review, we summarize the data for a comprehensive understanding of the role of TERT in cell death regulation, with a focus on the interaction of TERT with signaling pathways involved in cell survival and stress response.