Abstract

Telomeres are the ends of chromosomes and are non-coding DNA "end-capped" with structures containing DNA-quadruplexes and proteins. Telomeres become shorter after each cell division, which is one of the mechanisms of gradual ageing. Telomerase is the reverse transcriptase responsible for the extension of telomere length. It is well known that activation of telomerase in the most types of organism's cells is not enough for telomere length stabilization. The reason may be in the telomere "caps", which cover telomere ends from telomerase action. This experiment shows that telomeres were elongated by the combination of hypoxia activated telomerase and a newly developed pharmacological method removing the telomere cap when this combined method was applied to the human lymphocyte culture and the Wistar rats. Rats from the control group died at the age 1 year 7 month - 1 year 8 month, which is typical for the Wistar rats from our sub-line. Rats from the experimental group died at the age 2 year 4 month. The result Morris's labyrinth water test showed the better spatial memory function of rats passed the telomere stabilization therapy. The results of these experiments show the significant role of telomere stabilization therapy in prolongation of lifespan.