The role of telomerase reverse transcriptase in the mitochondrial protective functions of Angiotensin-(1-7) in diabetic CD34 cells.

Angiotensin (Ang)-(1-7) stimulates vasoprotective functions of diabetic (DB) CD34 hematopoietic stem/progenitor cells partly by decreasing reactive oxygen species (ROS), increasing nitric oxide (NO) levels and decreasing TGFβ1 secretion. Telomerase reverse transcriptase (TERT) translocates to mitochondria and regulates ROS generation. Alternative splicing of TERT results in variants α-, β- and α-β-TERT, which may oppose functions of full-length (FL) TERT.