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Detection of Senescence-Associated Heterochromatin Foci (SAHF)

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Book cover Cell Senescence

Part of the book series: Methods in Molecular Biology ((MIMB,volume 965))

Abstract

One of the most prominent features of cellular senescence, a stress response that prevents the propagation of cells that have accumulated potentially oncogenic alterations, is a permanent loss of proliferative potential. Thus, at odds with quiescent cells, which resume proliferation when stimulated to do so, senescent cells cannot proceed through the cell cycle even in the presence of mitogenic factors. Here, we describe a set of cytofluorometric techniques for studying how chemical and/or physical stimuli alter the cell cycle in vitro, in both qualitative and quantitative terms. Taken together, these methods allow for the identification of bona fide cytostatic effects as well as for a refined characterization of cell cycle distributions, providing information on proliferation, DNA content, as well as the presence of cell cycle phase-specific markers. At the end of the chapter, a set of guidelines is offered to assist researchers that approach the study of the cell cycle with the interpretation of results.

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Acknowledgments

This work was funded by a NIH/NCI grant (R01CA160331), a Liz Tilberis Scholar Award from the Ovarian Cancer Research Fund and the Department of Defense Ovarian Cancer Academy Award (OC093420). Support of Core Facilities used in this study was provided by Cancer Center Support Grant (CCSG) CA010815 to The Wistar Institute.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Women’s Cancer Program, Epigenetics and Progenitor Cells Keystone Program, Fox Chase Cancer Center, Philadelphia, PA, USA

    Katherine M. Aird & Rugang Zhang

Authors
  1. Katherine M. Aird
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  2. Rugang Zhang
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Rugang Zhang .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Institut Gustave Roussy, Pavillon de Recherche 1, INSERM U848, rue C. Desmoulins 39, Villejuif, 94085, France

    Lorenzo Galluzzi

  2. Institut Gustave Roussy, Pavillon de Recherche 1, INSERM U848, rue C. Desmoulins 39, Villejuif CEDEX, 94085, France

    Ilio Vitale

  3. Institut Gustave Roussy, Pavillon de Recherche 1, INSERM U848, rue C. Desmoulins 39, Villejuif CEDEX, 94085, France

    Oliver Kepp

  4. Institut Gustave Roussy (IGR), Pavillon de Recherche 1, INSERM, U848, rue Camille-Desmoulins 39, Villejuif, 94805, France

    Guido Kroemer

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© 2013 Springer Science+Busincess Media, LLC

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Aird, K.M., Zhang, R. (2013). Detection of Senescence-Associated Heterochromatin Foci (SAHF). In: Galluzzi, L., Vitale, I., Kepp, O., Kroemer, G. (eds) Cell Senescence. Methods in Molecular Biology, vol 965. Humana Press, Totowa, NJ. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-62703-239-1_12

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-62703-239-1_12

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  • Publisher Name: Humana Press, Totowa, NJ

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-62703-238-4

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-62703-239-1

  • eBook Packages: Springer Protocols

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