Ulrike Hartmann, Fabian Beier, Tim H. Brümmendorf
Telomere length analysis by fluorescence in situ hybridization and flow cytometry (Flow-FISH)/Telomerlängen-Messung mittels Fluoreszenz-in-situ-Hybridisierung und Durchflusszytometrie (Flow-FISH)
Telomeres are located at the ends of chromosomes and consist of non-coding TTAGGG repeats and telomere-binding proteins. Telomeres protect the chromosomal ends from degradation, aberrant recombination and end-to-end fusion. Due to the end-replication problem, telomeres shorten with each round of replication in vitro and in vivo, eventually leading to genetic instability and cellular senescence. In germline cells and in the majority of human cancers studied, telomere length is maintained by the enzyme telomerase, which adds terminal TTAGGG repeats onto the chromosome ends and thus counteracts replication-dependent telomere shortening.
Assessment of telomere length is of value to study the mitotic history as well as the proliferative potential of cells both in vitro and in vivo. In the hematopoietic system, telomere length has been found to be correlated with disease progression and response to specific treatment in a variety of diseases, that are associated with increased cellular (e.g. stem cell) turnover. Therefore, telomere biology might potentially provide prognostic information that may help to guide the direction and intensity of therapeutic strategies in the future. Based on these considerations, it is obligatory to be able to use reliable, fast and sensitive technology for the accurate assessment of telomere length. In this review, we will characterize the most commonly used methodes to measure telomere length in cells, with particular focus on fluorescence in situ hybridization and flow cytometry (Flow-FISH).
LaboratoriumsMedizin, Walter de Gruyter
Print ISSN: 0025-8466
Volume: 28, 08/2004
Pages: 307 - 316
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