The development of telomerase inhibitors: the G-quartet approach

Human telomeres, which consist of repeated TTAGGG sequences, have recently become the focus of intense and highly competitive biological research. Thi s scientific interest lies in their unique biological functions: telomeres are essential for genome integrity and appear to play an important role in cellular aging and cancer. As telomerase appears to be selectively expresse d in tumors versus normal cells, this enzyme represents a good target for i nhibition. Different types of telomerase inhibitors have recently been desc ribed. We will present briefly the different strategies that have been prop osed to achieve efficient telomerase inhibition, with a special emphasis on G-quartet ligands.