Expression and significance of telomerase activity between colorectal adenoma and colorectal cancer

Objective To study the differences in the expression of telomerase activity between colorectal adenoma and colorectal cancer, and to evaluate the role of telomerase activity in the development and progression of colorectal cancer. Method The expressions of telomerase activity in the tissues from 37 cases of colorectal cancer, 50 cases of colorectal adenoma, and 20 cases of normal colon specimens were detected using telomeric repeat amplification protocol (TRAP) assay. Results (1) The expression rate of telomerase activity was 86.5%in the tissues of colorectal cancer and 20.0%in colorectal adenoma while there was no expression in the normal colon tissues. The expression of telomerase activity in the cancerous tissues was significantly higher than that in the other tissues(P 0.001). (2) The expression rate of the telomerase activity in the colorectal cancer had no correlation with the location, size, histological grade, and stages of the tumor (P 0.05). Conclusion The telomerase activity is highly expressed in the tissues of colorectal cancer, which may play an important role in the development and progression of colorectal cancer and become a useful biomarker in the diagnoses and treatment of colorectal cancer.