Telomerase Activity in Human Laryngeal Squamous Cell Carcinomas and Adjacent Tissues

Objective To investigate the telomerase activity in human laryngeal squamous cell carcinomas and in their adjacent tissues and to explore the possibility of telomerase activity as tumor biological marker. Methods Thirty-nine human laryngeal squamous cell carcinomas specimens and 17 adjacent normal tissue specimens were studied for telomerase activity by means of TRAP(Telomeric Repeat Amplification Protocol) based on polymerise chain Ractions. Results The results showed that telomerase activities were detected in 35 of 39 human laryngeal squamous cell carcinomas samples with a 89.7%positive rate but no correlation was found between telomerase expression and clinical data.Lower level of telomerase activities were also detected in 6 of 17 adjacent normal tissue specimens. Conclusion Our data suggest that the reactivation of telomerase is closely associated with the development of human laryngeal squamous cell carcinomas, and it may become a tummspecific biomarker.