ABSTRACT
INTRODUCTION: Unstable forearm fractures may require surgical management by reduction and osteosynthesis with intramedullary needles. This fixation should be removed early if it has been left exposed, but this could increase the risk of refracture in a bone in the period of remodelling. As an alternative we can keep the needles, buried subcutaneously, for a longer time, to protect the bone callus. OBJECTIVE: To assess whether there are differences between using exposed needles with respect to burying them in paediatric patients with forearm fractures. Our hypothesis is that by burying the needles we keep them longer by reducing forearm refractures. MATERIAL AND METHODS: We present a cohort of 75 paediatric patients with a forearm fracture between 2010 and 2016. Demographic data, surgical technique, complications and patient follow-up were collected. RESULTS: The implants were left exposed in 50 patients and 25 buried. The average time of removal of the exposed implants was 6.8weeks and 17.6weeks in the buried ones. No significant differences were found in terms of consolidation (P=.19) or immobilization time (P=.22). Regarding refractures, a greater number was observed in the exposed osteosynthesis group (4patients) compared to only one case with buried osteosynthesis, but there were no significant differences (P=.49). No postsurgical complications were detected and the functionality was excellent at the end of the follow-up in both groups. CONCLUSION: Leaving implants buried in relation to skin exposed does not cause a decrease in the number of refractures or other complications, with adequate patient functionality in both cases.
Subject(s)
Fracture Fixation, Intramedullary/methods , Radius Fractures/surgery , Secondary Prevention/methods , Ulna Fractures/surgery , Adolescent , Child , Child, Preschool , Cohort Studies , Female , Fracture Fixation, Intramedullary/instrumentation , Fracture Healing , Fractures, Closed/surgery , Fractures, Open/surgery , Humans , Infant , Male , Radius Fractures/diagnostic imaging , Radius Fractures/prevention & control , Recurrence , Retrospective Studies , Ulna Fractures/diagnostic imaging , Ulna Fractures/prevention & controlABSTRACT
Recently, we observed that telomeres of BRCA1/2 mutation carriers were shorter than those of controls or sporadic breast cancer patients, suggesting that mutations in these genes might be responsible for this event. Given the contradictory results reported in the literature, we tested whether other parameters, such as chemotherapy, could be modifying telomere length (TL). We performed a cross-sectional study measuring leukocyte TL of 266 sporadic breasts cancer patients treated with first-line chemotherapy, with a median follow-up of 240 days. Additionally, we performed both cross-sectional and longitudinal studies in a series of 236 familial breast cancer patients that included affected and non-affected BRCA1/2 mutation carriers. We have measured in leukocytes from peripheral blood: the TL, percentage of short telomeres (<3 kb), telomerase activity levels and the annual telomere shortening speed. In sporadic cases we found that chemotherapy exerts a transient telomere shortening effect (around 2 years) that varies depending on the drug combination. In familial cases, only patients receiving treatment were associated with telomere shortening but they recovered normal TL after a period of 2 years. Chemotherapy affects TL and should be considered in the studies that correlate TL with disease susceptibility.
Subject(s)
Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols/therapeutic use , Breast Neoplasms/genetics , Telomere/genetics , Adult , Aged , Aged, 80 and over , Breast Neoplasms/drug therapy , Case-Control Studies , Cross-Sectional Studies , Female , Genes, BRCA1 , Genes, BRCA2 , Humans , Longitudinal Studies , Middle Aged , Mutation , Risk Factors , Telomere/metabolism , Telomere Shortening , Young AdultSubject(s)
Nobel Prize , Telomerase/metabolism , Telomere/genetics , Aging/genetics , Aging/physiology , Biomedical Research/history , History, 20th Century , History, 21st Century , Medicine , Neoplasms/enzymology , Neoplasms/genetics , Neoplasms/pathology , Physiology/history , Stem Cells/cytology , Stem Cells/enzymology , Stem Cells/metabolism , Telomere/metabolismABSTRACT
Hypomethylation of repeated elements in the genome is a common feature of human cancer, however, the direct consequences of this epigenetic defect for cancer biology are still largely unknown. Telomeres are specialized chromatin structures at the ends of eukaryotic chromosomes formed by tandem repeats of G-rich sequences and associated proteins, which have an essential role in chromosome end protection and genomic stability. Telomeric DNA repeats cannot be methylated, however, the adjacent subtelomeric DNA is heavily methylated in humans. Here, we show that the methylation status of subtelomeric DNA repeats negatively correlates with telomere length and telomere recombination in a large panel of human cancer cell lines. These findings suggest that tumor telomere length and integrity can be influenced by epigenetic factors. Finally, we show that treatment of human cancer cell lines with demethylating drugs results in hypomethylation of subtelomeric repeats and increased telomere recombination, which in turn may facilitate telomere elongation. All together, these findings suggest that tumor telomere length and integrity can be influenced by the epigenetic status of cancer cells.
Subject(s)
Epigenesis, Genetic/genetics , Gene Expression Regulation, Neoplastic , Neoplasms/genetics , Telomere/genetics , Acetylation , Cell Line, Tumor , DNA Methylation/genetics , DNA, Neoplasm/genetics , Gene Amplification , Genome, Human , Histones/genetics , Humans , Recombination, Genetic , Repetitive Sequences, Nucleic Acid/genetics , Telomerase/genetics , Telomerase/metabolism , Telomere/chemistry , Telomere/ultrastructureABSTRACT
No disponible
Subject(s)
Humans , Female , Middle Aged , Carpal Tunnel Syndrome/diagnosis , Carpal Tunnel Syndrome/etiology , Lipoma/complications , Bursa, Synovial/pathologyABSTRACT
No disponible
Subject(s)
Female , Middle Aged , Humans , Echinococcosis , Bone Cysts/parasitology , Humerus/parasitologyABSTRACT
Telomeres are specialised structures at the ends of mammalian chromosomes with many unique properties. Recombinational events at telomeres are more frequent than in the remainder of the genome by several orders of magnitude. This study examined the influence of telomerase status and telomere length on genome-wide recombination assessed by genomic sister chromatid exchange (G-SCE). Telomerase deficiency per se appears to increase G-SCE frequencies in splenocytes but as telomeres shorten through subsequent generations of mTerc(-/-) mice this increase is progressively lost. Telomerase status and telomere length also influences the induction of G-SCE by UV light. Even when mitotic recombination is affected by PARP deficiency, mTerc and telomere length interact to further affect G-SCE frequencies. Taken together the data presented here demonstrate that telomerase status and telomere length can affect recombination frequencies genome-wide.
Subject(s)
Mitosis/genetics , RNA/genetics , Recombination, Genetic , Sister Chromatid Exchange/genetics , Telomerase/genetics , Telomere/genetics , Analysis of Variance , Animals , Cell Cycle , Gene Expression Regulation, Enzymologic , Gene Frequency , Genotype , Mice , Mice, Inbred C57BL , Mice, Knockout , Poly(ADP-ribose) Polymerases/deficiency , Poly(ADP-ribose) Polymerases/genetics , Spleen/cytology , Spleen/enzymology , Telomerase/deficiency , Telomere/ultrastructureABSTRACT
No disponible
Subject(s)
Female , Middle Aged , Humans , Foot/pathology , Lipoma/diagnosis , Soft Tissue Neoplasms/diagnosis , Tomography, X-Ray Computed , Magnetic Resonance SpectroscopyABSTRACT
Here, we show that ectopic expression of the catalytic subunit of mouse telomerase (mTert) confers a growth advantage to primary murine embryonic fibroblasts (MEFs), which have very long telomeres, as well as facilitates their spontaneous immortalization and increases their colony-forming capacity upon activation of oncogenes. We demonstrate that these telomere length-independent growth-promoting effects of mTert overexpression require catalytically active mTert, as well as the formation of mTert/Terc complexes. The gene expression profile of mTert-overexpressing MEFs indicates that telomerase enhances growth in these cells through the repression of growth-inhibiting genes of the transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-beta) signaling network. We functionally validate this result by showing that mTert abrogates the growth-inhibitory effect of TGF-beta in MEFs, thus demonstrating that telomerase increments the proliferative potential of primary mouse embryonic fibroblasts by targeting the TGF-beta pathway.
Subject(s)
DNA-Binding Proteins/biosynthesis , DNA-Binding Proteins/genetics , Signal Transduction/physiology , Telomerase/physiology , Transforming Growth Factor beta/physiology , Animals , Cells, Cultured , DNA-Binding Proteins/deficiency , DNA-Binding Proteins/physiology , Gene Expression Profiling , Growth Inhibitors/antagonists & inhibitors , Growth Inhibitors/physiology , Mice , Mice, Inbred C57BL , Mice, Knockout , Retroviridae/genetics , Telomerase/biosynthesis , Telomerase/deficiency , Telomerase/genetics , Transduction, Genetic , Transforming Growth Factor beta/antagonists & inhibitorsABSTRACT
No disponible
Subject(s)
Female , Aged , Humans , Enchondromatosis/diagnosis , Acromioclavicular Joint , Arthritis/complications , Enchondromatosis/complications , Humerus , Shoulder Pain/etiologyABSTRACT
Telomere shortening limits the regenerative capacity of primary cells in vitro by inducing cellular senescence characterized by a permanent growth arrest of cells with critically short telomeres. To test whether this in vitro model of cellular senescence applies to impaired organ regeneration induced by telomere shortening in vivo, we monitored liver regeneration after partial hepatectomy in telomerase-deficient mice. Our study shows that telomere shortening is heterogeneous at the cellular level and inhibits a subpopulation of cells with critically short telomeres from entering the cell cycle. This subpopulation of cells with impaired proliferative capacity shows senescence-associated beta-galactosidase activity, while organ regeneration is accomplished by cells with sufficient telomere reserves that are capable of additional rounds of cell division. This study provides experimental evidence for the existence of an in vivo process of cellular senescence induced by critical telomere shortening that has functional impact on organ regeneration.
Subject(s)
Cell Cycle , Regeneration , Telomere , Animals , Cell Division , Immunohistochemistry , Liver/cytology , Liver/ultrastructure , Mice , Mice, Knockout , Oligonucleotide Array Sequence Analysis , Polymerase Chain Reaction , RNA/genetics , RNA/physiology , Telomerase/genetics , Telomerase/physiologySubject(s)
Arthralgia/diagnostic imaging , Arthralgia/physiopathology , Knee Joint/diagnostic imaging , Knee Joint/physiopathology , Range of Motion, Articular/physiology , Diagnosis, Differential , Female , Humans , Kinesiology, Applied/instrumentation , Kinesiology, Applied/methods , Middle Aged , RadiographyABSTRACT
No disponible
Subject(s)
Middle Aged , Female , Humans , Range of Motion, Articular , Arthralgia , Kinesiology, Applied , Diagnosis, Differential , Knee JointABSTRACT
No disponible
Subject(s)
Aged , Female , Humans , Ossification, Heterotopic , Myositis Ossificans , Collateral Ligaments/pathology , Diagnosis, DifferentialABSTRACT
No disponible
Subject(s)
Adult , Female , Humans , Osteochondritis , Metatarsal Bones/pathology , Metatarsal Bones , Osteochondritis/therapyABSTRACT
Cultivation of primary cells over many generations eventually results in a reproducible loss of proliferative potential that has been termed 'replicative senescence'. Recent work has revealed the heterogeneity of senescence. Importantly, the analysis of the various aspects and types of senescence has turned out to be very informative about numerous in vivo processes, and particularly about carcinogenesis.
Subject(s)
Cellular Senescence , Animals , DNA Damage , Humans , Mice , Models, Biological , Oxidative Stress , Proto-Oncogene Proteins p21(ras)/physiology , Telomere/physiology , Transcription, GeneticABSTRACT
PURPOSE: To review the basic features of telomeres with particular emphasis on their potential importance in radiation biology. Recent findings suggest that telomere length can influence radiation sensitivity in mouse and that several human radiosensitive disorders also show abnormalities in telomere dynamics. Numerous studies indicate that telomeric sequences may play a role in determining the stability of certain genomic regions both spontaneously and following irradiation. Furthermore, a number of transmissible genomic instability systems have been described in which it appears that telomere metabolism may be contributing to the delayed effects observed. Features of telomeres and telomere biology relevant to these topics are reviewed. CONCLUSIONS: The evidence that telomeres and the molecular pathways of telomere maintenance can play a role in determining the outcome of radiation exposure is now substantial. Thus, the field of telomere biology deserves continued attention from radiobiologists.
Subject(s)
Chromosome Aberrations , Chromosome Disorders , Radiation Tolerance , Telomere/physiology , Animals , Enzyme Induction/radiation effects , Humans , Neoplasms, Radiation-Induced/etiology , Telomerase/biosynthesisABSTRACT
Reconstitution of telomerase activity is proposed as a potential gene therapy to prevent, or rescue, age-related diseases produced by critical telomere shortening. However, it is not known whether or not short telomeres are irreversibly damaged. We addressed this by re-introducing telomerase in late generation telomerase-deficient mice, Terc-/-, which have short telomeres and show severe proliferative defects. For this, we have crossed these mice with Terc+/- mice and analyzed telomere length, chromosomal instability and premature aging of the progeny. The Terc-/- progeny had one set of chromosomes with normal telomeres, whereas the other set remained with critically short telomeres; these mice presented chromosomal instability and premature aging. In contrast, Terc+/- progeny showed all chromosomes with detectable telomeres, and did not show chromosomal instability or premature aging. These results prove that critically short telomeres can be rescued by telomerase, and become fully functional, thus rescuing premature aging. This has important implications for the future design of telomerase-based gene therapy of age-related diseases.