Purpose: Telomerase is the ribonucleoprotein enzyme associated with the immortalization and oncogenesis of cancer cells. To examine the expression of two major components of the telomerase associated gene, hEST2/hTRT and TLP1/TP1, in urinary bladder carcinogenesis, we studied 27 human urinary bladder cancers using the reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) method.
Materials and methods: Total RNAs were obtained from 27 urinary bladder cancer and 23 normal bladder tissues using surgical removal or the cold cup bioptical method. The cDNA was then synthesized from these total RNAs, and hTRT and TP1 mRNA were amplified using the RT-PCR method.
Results: hEST2/hTRT expression was detected in all 27 (100%) cases. However, TLP1/TP1 was detected in 25 of 27 (93%) cases. The correlation between these expressions and clinicopathological characteristics such as tumor grade, clinical stage, and histological type showed no statistical significance. Twenty-three cases of normal bladder tissues showed no expression of hEST2/hTRT, but 18 of 23 (78%) cases showed TLP1/TP1 expression.
Conclusions: These findings indicate that the up-regulation of hEST2/hTRT gene expression may play a critical role in carcinogenesis of human urinary bladder cancers. RT-PCR for detecting expression of hEST2/hTRT gene is a powerful method for the screening and diagnosis of urinary bladder cancer.