Rate of telomere shortening and cardiovascular damage: a longitudinal study in the 1946 British Birth Cohort

Abstract

AimCross-sectional studies reported associations between short leucocyte telomere length (LTL) and measures of vascular and cardiac damage. However, the contribution of LTL dynamics to the age-related process of cardiovascular (CV) remodelling remains unknown. In this study, we explored whether the rate of LTL shortening can predict CV phenotypes over 10-year follow-up and the influence of established CV risk factors on this relationship.Methods and resultsAll the participants from the MRC National Survey of Health and Development (NSHD) with measures of LTL and traditional CV risk factors at 53 and 60–64 years and common carotid intima-media thickness (cIMT), cardiac mass and left ventricular function at 60–64 years were included. LTL was measured by real-time polymerase chain reaction and available at both time points in 1033 individuals. While LTL at 53 years was not linked with any CV phenotype at 60–64 years, a negative association was found between LTL and cIMT at 60–64 years (β = −0.017, P = 0.015). However, the strongest association was found between rate of telomere shortening between 53 and 60–64 years and values of cIMT at 60–64 years (β = −0.020, P = 0.006). This association was not affected by adjustment for traditional CV risk factors. Cardiac measurements were not associated with cross-sectional or longitudinal measures of LTL.ConclusionThese findings suggest that the rate of progression of cellular ageing in late midlife (reflected by the rate of LTL attrition) relates to vascular damage, independently from contribution of CV risk factor exposure.

Telomere length change plateaus at 4 years of age in Latino children: associations with baseline length and maternal change

“…Other studies that have found associative relationships have all been cross sectional in nature (e.g., Buxton et al 2011;Shalev et al 2014). Recent studies of adults report that major life stressors (Puterman et al 2015), evidence of vascular damage (Masi et al 2014), and factors associated with the metabolic syndrome, abdominal obesity and smoking (Huzen et al 2014) are associated with increased telomere attrition. Our study is the first investigation of risk factors for telomere attrition in young children; the only other two longitudinal studies in children focused on older age groups (Shalev et al 2013;Garcon-Calzon et al 2014).…”

Leukocyte telomere length and cardiovascular disease in African Americans: The Jackson Heart Study

“…The previous literature shows inconsistent association of LTL with these subclinical CVD measures, with limited data available in large cohorts, particularly for AAC. In cross-sectional analyses, several European cohorts showed no association of longer LTL with IMT when adjusting for conventional CVD risk factors [41–43], or found associations in only a subset of participants (for example obese males) [44]. However, in a Native American population from the Strong Heart Family Study shorter baseline LTL predicted incidence and progression of carotid plaque [11].…”

Telomeres, Early-Life Stress and Mental Illness

“…Rate of telomere length attrition has been correlated with cardiovascular damage in middle-aged adults, even after adjustment for traditional cardiovascular risk factors [43]. In cross-sectional studies, leukocyte telomere length was inversely associated with carotid intima medial thickness, a marker of cardiovascular disease risk and atherosclerotic damage, in obese men [44].…”