GENETIC DIAGNOSTIC-TEST OF HEPATOCELLULAR-CARCINOMA BY TELOMERASE CATALYTIC SUBUNIT MESSENGER-RNA

This study investigated the relationship between telomerase activity a nd telomere length and between telomerase reverse transcriptase (hTERT ) mRNA and telomere length. Both cancerous and non-cancerous tissues w ere studied in individuals with hepatic carcinoma. In this study, the telomere length in HCC livers had a wide range, no clear significant c orrelation was found between hTERT mRNA and telomere length. Telomeras e activity was more strongly correlated with hTERT mRNA than with telo mere length. The correlation between hTERT mRNA and telomerase activit y shown here indicates that hTERT mRNA has potential for cancer diagno sis.