BACKGROUND: Although intravesical bacillus Calmette-Guerin (BCG) therapy is very effective in the treatment of and prophylaxis against superficial @entity150 , its exact mechanism of action is not clear. In this study, the effect of BCG on telomerase activity was examined in the @entity1 and J82 @entity150 cell lines, the ACHN @entity1 @entity1358 cell line, and the PC-3 @entity1 @entity263 cell line. METHODS: @entity1 and J82 cells were cocultured with BCG for 5 days. Telomerase activity was measured by telomeric repeat amplification protocol. Cell-cycle phase was determined by FACS analysis. RESULTS: Telomerase activity in all cell lines provided high absorbance. Telomerase activity in BCG-treated @entity1 and J82 cells was significantly decreased when compared with that in the nontreated cells. On the other hand, telomerase activity did not change in ACHN and PC-3 cells after they had been cocultured with BCG. In BCG-treated @entity1 cells and J82 cells, apoptotic cells were markedly increased compared with those in the nontreated cells. CONCLUSION: These results suggest that the reduction of telomerase activity is related to the mechanism of BCG effects. Possible mechanisms to be considered are either that BCG inhibits telomerase first, or that it induces apoptosis and decreases telomerase activity as a result of this induction.

BCG effects on telomerase activity in XXXX cell lines.

@entity1 :: ('9606', 'Species') :: ['human', 'T24'] @entity1358 :: ('MESH:D002292', 'Disease') :: ['renal cell carcinoma'] @entity150 :: ('MESH:D001749', 'Disease') :: ['bladder cancer'] @entity263 :: ('MESH:D011471', 'Disease') :: ['prostate cancer']
@entity150 :: (MESH:D001749,Disease) :: ['bladder cancer']
