Assessing natural telomerase activators (P4342)

Abstract

Abstract Telomeres are DNA-protein complexes at the ends of chromosomes that shorten during cell division, an occurrence that causes cellular senescence. Telomere shortening is offset by the action of a reverse transcriptase enzyme called telomerase, which can extend the DNA strands at the ends of chromosomes and delay cellular senescence. These observations have lead investigators to search for methods of stimulating telomerase activity in the hopes of delaying cellular senescence and extending cellular function. Currently, there are natural compounds proven to activate telomerase activity, i.e., TA-65 and TAT2. Both compounds are extracts from the plant Astragalus membranaceus, which is commercially available. Different formulations for Astragalus membranaceus can be obtained. The objective of this research was to compare two products, TA-65 and HTA (both extract of Astragalus membranaceus) for their ability to activate telomerase activity and their affect on cellular growth on both CD4 and CD8 T cell cultures. The results of our study indicate that TA-65 was able to induce telomerase activity 1.4-3.3x fold relative to controls, whereas HTA showed increases in telomerase activity up to 1.3x-fold only in two donors but did not reach statistical significance. In addition we demonstrate that T cells treated with TA-65 had increase cell growth within 7 days of culturing, again HTA also showed increases in cell growth but did not reach statistical significance.