Telomerase activity in T-cells as a functional test for pathogenicity assessment of novel genetic variants in telomere biology disordersVise andre og tillknytning
2025 (engelsk)Inngår i: Scientific Reports, E-ISSN 2045-2322, Vol. 15, nr 1, artikkel-id 29048
Artikkel i tidsskrift (Fagfellevurdert) Published
Abstract [en]
The telomerase enzyme is essential for telomere maintenance. Pathogenic variants in telomere-associated genes have been associated with critical telomere shortening, resulting in telomere biology disorders (TBD) such as bone marrow failure, idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, and dyskeratosis congenita. The TBDs are clinically heterogeneous and families with TBD often experience an earlier onset and increased symptom severity for each generation. Consensus guidelines have identified certain genetic variants as pathogenic or likely pathogenic, but many are classified as variants of uncertain significance (VUS) in the absence of additional supporting evidence. The pathogenicity of a VUS in genes encoding the telomerase complex could be evaluated by in vitro telomerase activity (TA) measurement. We have developed a functional TA assay in patient-derived T-cells based on the Telomeric Repeat Amplification Protocol (TRAP) combined with qPCR. TA was significantly lower in six TBD patients with a TERT or TERC variant compared to controls (0.11 versus 0.54, p < 0.001). Four patients had a TA of more than three standard deviations below the mean of controls, strongly supporting pathogenicity of the variants. In summary, functional analysis of TA in patient-derived cells could support pathogenic evaluation in clinical diagnostics and reduce the number of reported VUS for TBD patients.
sted, utgiver, år, opplag, sider
Springer Nature, 2025. Vol. 15, nr 1, artikkel-id 29048
Emneord [en]
Functional analysis, Genetic variants, Telomerase activity, Telomere biology disorders, Telomere length
HSV kategori
Identifikatorer
URN: urn:nbn:se:umu:diva-243409DOI: 10.1038/s41598-025-12566-7PubMedID: 40781257Scopus ID: 2-s2.0-105012849710OAI: oai:DiVA.org:umu-243409DiVA, id: diva2:1991784
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