No abstract

Telomerase enzyme inhibitors have gained attention of scientific field due to the specificity of action of telomerase based therapies. Some telomerase have good combinatorial action with certain DNA damaging drugs. Natural compounds isolated from microbes provide a new scope of screening and large scale production of telomerase inhibitors. This review emphasizes the biochemistry and mode of action of different types of telomerase inhibitors isolated from microbial sources. Also elaborates on classification of telomerase inhibitors based on their mode of action in cancer cells.

This particular compound can be suggested as a suitable compound for developing a future anticancer drug. The selectivity towards G-quadruplex over normal DNA duplex gives a clue that it is likely to show lower cytotoxicity in normal cells.

The linear ends of chromosome are protected by specialized ribonucleoprotein (RNP) termed as telomere. These specialized terminal elements with tandem repeated sequence are the protective cap that alleviate end replication problem and cell senescence. The telomere length maintenance is essential to avoid cell death and apoptosis. Telomere shortening has been related to chronic stress due to several factors, which include not only psychological stress but also diseases such as cardiovascular diseases and cancer. Telomerase enzyme which maintains telomere length is the major factor responsible for evading cell death. Telomere length maintenance and telomerase expression put together are the prerequisite for immortality, an essential character for cancer cells. Understanding the mechanism of telomere and telomerase functions paves way for eradicating the diseases such as cancer.