CONCISE REPORT

Telomerase activity in B and T lymphocytes of patients with systemic lupus erythematosus

W Klapper¹, F Moosig², A Sotnikova¹, W Qian^1,3, J O Schröder², R Parwaresch¹

¹ Department of Haematopathology and Lymph Node Registry Kiel, University Kiel Niemannsweg 11, 24105 Kiel, Germany
² Second Department of Internal Medicine, University Kiel, Chemnitzstr 33, 24107 Kiel, Germany
³ Department of Haematology, First affiliated Hospital of Zhejiang University, Qianchun Road 79, Hangzhou 310003, China

Correspondence to:
Correspondence to:
Dr W Klapper
wklapper{at}path.uni-kiel.de

Objective: To evaluate telomerase activity as a marker of lymphocyte proliferation in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE).

Methods: CD19+, CD4+, and CD8+ lymphocytes were isolated from the peripheral blood of nine patients with SLE and nine healthy controls by means of magnetic bead-coupled antibodies and tested for telomerase activity with the TRAP assay.

Results: Telomerase activity was significantly increased in CD19+ B cells from patients with SLE. CD4+ and CD8+ T cells from lupus patients displayed increased mean telomerase activity, although the difference from normal controls did not reach statistical significance.

Conclusions: Increased telomerase activity in the B and the T cell lineage might indicate activation and proliferation of these lymphocytes.

Keywords: telomerase; telomere; systemic lupus erythematosus; aging

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