scholarly journals Different epigenetic signatures of newborn telomere length and telomere attrition rate in early life

Aging ◽  
2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Congrong Wang ◽  
Tim S. Nawrot ◽  
Charlotte Van Der Stukken ◽  
Dominika Tylus ◽  
Hanne Sleurs ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Telomere Length ◽  
Early Life ◽  
Attrition Rate ◽  
Telomere Attrition ◽  
Epigenetic Signatures

scholarly journals Telomere length: how the length makes a difference

2020 ◽  
Vol 47 (9) ◽  
pp. 7181-7188 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Lulkiewicz ◽  
J. Bajsert ◽  
P. Kopczynski ◽  
W. Barczak ◽  
B. Rubis
Keyword(s):  
Telomere Length ◽  
Meta Analysis ◽  
Telomerase Activity ◽  
Human Cells ◽  
Attrition Rate ◽  
Severe Damage ◽  
Telomere Attrition ◽  
Adult Men ◽  
Cell Life ◽  
Real Value

Abstract Telomerase is perceived as an immortality enzyme that might provide longevity to cells and whole organisms. Importantly, it is generally inactive in most somatic cells of healthy, adult men. Consequently, its substrates, i.e. telomeres, get shorter in most human cells with time. Noteworthy, cell life limitation due to telomere attrition during cell divisions, may not be as bad as it looks since longer cell life means longer exposition to harmful factors. Consequently, telomere length (attrition rate) becomes a factor that is responsible for inducing the signaling that leads to the elimination of cells that lived long enough to acquire severe damage. It seems that telomere length that depends on many different factors (including telomerase activity but also genetic factors, a hormonal profile that reflects sex, etc.) might become a useful marker of aging and exposition to stress. Thus in the current paper, we review the factors that affect telomere length in human cells focusing on sex that all together with different environmental and hormonal regulations as well as parental aspect affect telomere attrition rate. We also raise some limitations in the assessment of telomere length that hinders a trustworthy meta-analysis that might lead to acknowledgment of the real value of this parameter.

scholarly journals Life-long telomere attrition predicts health and lifespan in a large mammal

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Luise A. Seeker ◽  
Sarah L. Underwood ◽  
Rachael V. Wilbourn ◽  
Jennifer Fairlie ◽  
Hannah Froy ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Telomere Length ◽  
Milk Production ◽  
Early Life ◽  
Adult Life ◽  
First Year ◽  
Adult Health ◽  
Telomere Attrition ◽  
Research Population ◽  
Commercial Farms ◽  
First Year Of Life

AbstractTelomere length measured in blood cells is predictive of subsequent adult health and survival across a range of vertebrate species. However, we currently do not know whether such associations result from among-individual differences in telomere length determined genetically or by environmental factors early in life, or from differences in the rate of telomere attrition over the course of life. Here, we measured relative leukocyte telomere length (RLTL) multiple times across the entire lifespan of dairy cattle in a research population that is closely monitored for health and milk production and where individuals are only culled in response to health issues and less due to poor milk production than on purely commercial farms. Our results clearly show that the average amount of telomere attrition over an individual’s life, not their average or early life telomere length predicted when an individual was culled. Within-individual telomere length attrition could reflect environmental or physiological insults which may accumulate to predict individual health-span. We also show that animals with more telomere attrition in their first year of life were culled at a younger age, indicating that early life stressors may have a prolonged effect on adult life.

scholarly journals The Individual Blood Cell Telomere Attrition Rate Is Telomere Length Dependent

PLoS Genetics ◽  
2009 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. e1000375 ◽  
Author(s):  
Katarina Nordfjäll ◽  
Ulrika Svenson ◽  
Karl-Fredrik Norrback ◽  
Rolf Adolfsson ◽  
Per Lenner ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Blood Cell ◽  
Telomere Length ◽  
Attrition Rate ◽  
Telomere Attrition ◽  
The Individual

P1693The longitudinal associations between telomere attrition and the effects of blood pressure lowering and antihypertensive treatment

2019 ◽  
Vol 40 (Supplement_1) ◽  
Author(s):  
S Y Zhang ◽  
R X Li ◽  
Y Y Yang ◽  
Y Chen ◽  
S J Yang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Blood Pressure ◽  
Telomere Length ◽  
Antihypertensive Treatment ◽  
Attrition Rate ◽  
Leukocyte Telomere Length ◽  
Blood Pressure Lowering ◽  
Blood Samples ◽  
Telomere Attrition ◽  
Pressure Lowering

Abstract Background Leukocyte telomere length, as an emerging marker of biological age, has been shown to associate with hypertension. However, it has not been studied whether telomere attrition rate in patients with hypertension is related to the heterogeneity of blood pressure (BP) response to antihypertensive therapy. Purpose Our aim is to investigate the relationship between telomere attrition rate and BP lowering in a longitudinal Chinese hypertensive cohort. We also aim to explore the potential association between telomere attrition rate and the differences in antihypertensive treatment response. Methods A community-based, prospective study was conducted at BenXi county, Liaoning province, in the northern China. A total of 3,671 hypertensive patients were recruited from 2013 t 2015 and of whom 1,382 provided blood samples at baseline. After a median follow-up period of 2.2 (range 1.5–2.4) years, the blood samples were collected from 1,197 patients again in 2016, and 185 patients were not reached to obtain blood sample because of immigration. In addition, 89 blood samples were excluded due to insufficient quality. Finally, 1,108 patients who are available for blood samples both at baseline and at follow-up, were included in the analysis for telomeres change. Annual telomere attrition rate was calculated as (follow-up telomere length-baseline telomere length)/follow-up year, and then categorized into two groups: the shorten (annual telomere attrition rate <0) and the lengthen (annual telomere attrition rate >0). Multivariable linear regression model was used to examine the association of annual telomere attrition rate with blood pressure lowering and antihypertensive treatment. Cox Proportional Hazards model was used to examine the association between annual telomere attrition rate and cardiovascular disease risk. Results In multivariable linear regression models, the telomere lengthening was significantly associated with decrease in systolic blood pressure (SBP) (β: −4.13; p=0.006) and pulse pressure (PP) (β: −3.22; p=0.007) during the follow-up, but not associated with diastolic blood pressure (DBP) change. And the associations were observed age- and gender-specific difference. The lengthen was significantly associated with ΔSBP and ΔPP in women and younger patients (age ≤60 years old). Furthermore, the associations were observed in patients who treated with calcium channel blocker (CCB) and angiotensin receptor blocker (ARB), but not in diuretics. Then we found no significant association between annual telomere attrition rate and incident cardiovascular events during the follow-up. Conclusion(s) Our data showed that the increasing of leukocyte telomere length is associated with the decreasing of SBP and PP, particularly for the patients who received CCB and ARB therapy. These data showed that annual telomere attrition rate could be a marker of treatment response and will help in clinical management. Acknowledgement/Funding the National Science and Technology Pillar Program during the Twelfth Five-year Plan Period (No. 2011BAI11B04)

scholarly journals TERC Variants Associated with Short Leukocyte Telomeres: Implication of Higher Early Life Leukocyte Telomere Attrition as Assessed by the Blood-and-Muscle Model

Cells ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (6) ◽  
pp. 1360
Author(s):  
Simon Toupance ◽  
Maria G. Stathopoulou ◽  
Alexandros M. Petrelis ◽  
Vesna Gorenjak ◽  
Carlos Labat ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Telomere Length ◽  
Early Life ◽  
Telomere Maintenance ◽  
Muscle Model ◽  
Mendelian Randomisation ◽  
Atherosclerotic Cardiovascular Disease ◽  
Nucleotide Polymorphisms ◽  
Telomere Attrition ◽  
Adult Age

Short leukocyte telomere length (LTL) is associated with atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD). Mendelian randomisation studies, using single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) associated with short LTL, infer a causal role of LTL in ASCVD. Recent results, using the blood-and-muscle model, indicate that higher early life LTL attrition, as estimated by the ratio between LTL and skeletal muscle telomere length (MTL), rather than short LTL at conception, as estimated by MTL, should be responsible of the ASCVD-LTL connection. We combined LTL and MTL measurements and SNPs profiling in 402 individuals to determine if 15 SNPs classically described as associated with short LTL at adult age were rather responsible for higher LTL attrition during early life than for shorter LTL at birth. Two of these SNPs (rs12696304 and rs10936599) were associated with LTL in our cohort (p = 0.027 and p = 0.025, respectively). These SNPs, both located on the TERC gene, were associated with the LTL/MTL ratio (p = 0.007 and p = 0.037, respectively), but not with MTL (p = 0.78 and p = 0.32 respectively). These results suggest that SNPs located on genes coding for telomere maintenance proteins may contribute to a higher LTL attrition during the highly replicative first years of life and have an impact later on the development of ASCVD.

scholarly journals Why are there associations between telomere length and behaviour?

2018 ◽  
Vol 373 (1741) ◽  
pp. 20160438 ◽  
Author(s):  
Melissa Bateson ◽  
Daniel Nettle
Keyword(s):  
Individual Differences ◽  
Telomere Length ◽  
Empirical Evidence ◽  
Early Life ◽  
Smoking Behaviour ◽  
Theme Issue ◽  
Early Life Adversity ◽  
Telomere Attrition ◽  
Specific Behaviour ◽  
Telomere Dynamics

Individual differences in telomere length are associated with individual differences in behaviour in humans and birds. Within the human epidemiological literature this association is assumed to result from specific behaviour patterns causing changes in telomere dynamics. We argue that selective adoption—the hypothesis that individuals with short telomeres are more likely to adopt specific behaviours—is an alternative worthy of consideration. Selective adoption could occur either because telomere length directly affects behaviour or because behaviour and telomere length are both affected by a third variable, such as exposure to early-life adversity. We present differential predictions of the causation and selective adoption hypotheses and describe how these could be tested with longitudinal data on telomere length. Crucially, if behaviour is causal then it should be associated with differential rates of telomere attrition. Using smoking behaviour as an example, we show that the evidence that smoking accelerates the rate of telomere attrition within individuals is currently weak. We conclude that the selective adoption hypothesis for the association between behaviour and telomere length is both mechanistically plausible and, if anything, more compatible with existing empirical evidence than the hypothesis that behaviour is causal. This article is part of the theme issue ‘Understanding diversity in telomere dynamics’.

scholarly journals Stress exposure in early post-natal life reduces telomere length: an experimental demonstration in a long-lived seabird

2014 ◽  
Vol 281 (1782) ◽  
pp. 20133151 ◽  
Author(s):  
Katherine A. Herborn ◽  
Britt J. Heidinger ◽  
Winnie Boner ◽  
Jose C. Noguera ◽  
Aileen Adam ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Telomere Length ◽  
Immune Cells ◽  
Early Life ◽  
Life History Stage ◽  
Experimental Demonstration ◽  
Stress Exposure ◽  
Telomere Attrition ◽  
Delayed Effects ◽  
In The Wild ◽  
Telomere Loss

Exposure to stressors early in life is associated with faster ageing and reduced longevity. One important mechanism that could underlie these late life effects is increased telomere loss. Telomere length in early post-natal life is an important predictor of subsequent lifespan, but the factors underpinning its variability are poorly understood. Recent human studies have linked stress exposure to increased telomere loss. These studies have of necessity been non-experimental and are consequently subjected to several confounding factors; also, being based on leucocyte populations, where cell composition is variable and some telomere restoration can occur, the extent to which these effects extend beyond the immune system has been questioned. In this study, we experimentally manipulated stress exposure early in post-natal life in nestling European shags ( Phalacrocorax aristotelis ) in the wild and examined the effect on telomere length in erythrocytes. Our results show that greater stress exposure during early post-natal life increases telomere loss at this life-history stage, and that such an effect is not confined to immune cells. The delayed effects of increased telomere attrition in early life could therefore give rise to a ‘time bomb’ that reduces longevity in the absence of any obvious phenotypic consequences early in life.

scholarly journals Telomere attrition rates are associated with weather conditions and predict productive lifespan in dairy cattle

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Luise A. Seeker ◽  
Sarah L. Underwood ◽  
Rachael V. Wilbourn ◽  
Jennifer Dorrens ◽  
Hannah Froy ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Dairy Cattle ◽  
Telomere Length ◽  
Environmental Conditions ◽  
Early Life ◽  
Animal Health ◽  
Weather Conditions ◽  
Adult Health ◽  
Attrition Rates ◽  
Telomere Attrition ◽  
Research Population

AbstractTelomere length is predictive of adult health and survival across vertebrate species. However, we currently do not know whether such associations result from among-individual differences in telomere length determined genetically or by early-life environmental conditions, or from differences in the rate of telomere attrition over the course of life that might be affected by environmental conditions. Here, we measured relative leukocyte telomere length (RLTL) multiple times across the entire lifespan of dairy cattle in a research population that is closely monitored for health and milk production and where individuals are predominantly culled in response to health issues. Animals varied in their change in RLTL between subsequent measurements and RLTL shortened more during early life and following hotter summers which are known to cause heat stress in dairy cows. The average amount of telomere attrition calculated over multiple repeat samples of individuals predicted a shorter productive lifespan, suggesting a link between telomere loss and health. TL attrition was a better predictor of when an animal was culled than their average TL or the previously for this population reported significant TL at the age of 1 year. Our present results support the hypothesis that TL is a flexible trait that is affected by environmental factors and that telomere attrition is linked to animal health and survival traits. Change in telomere length may represent a useful biomarker in animal welfare studies.

scholarly journals Assessment of the Telomere Length and Its Effect on the Symptomatology of Parkinson’s Disease

Antioxidants ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 137
Author(s):  
Tina Levstek ◽  
Sara Redenšek ◽  
Maja Trošt ◽  
Vita Dolžan ◽  
Katarina Trebušak Podkrajšek
Keyword(s):  
Parkinson’S Disease ◽  
Parkinson's Disease ◽  
Telomere Length ◽  
Repetitive Sequences ◽  
Housekeeping Gene ◽  
Cellular Aging ◽  
Brain Diseases ◽  
Motor Complications ◽  
Telomere Attrition ◽  
Significant Difference

Telomeres, which are repetitive sequences that cap the end of the chromosomes, shorten with each cell division. Besides cellular aging, there are several other factors that influence telomere length (TL), in particular, oxidative stress and inflammation, which play an important role in the pathogenesis of neurodegenerative brain diseases including Parkinson’s disease (PD). So far, the majority of studies have not demonstrated a significant difference in TL between PD patients and healthy individuals. However, studies investigating the effect of TL on the symptomatology and disease progression of PD are scarce, and thus, warranted. We analyzed TL of peripheral blood cells in a sample of 204 PD patients without concomitant autoimmune diseases and analyzed its association with several PD related phenotypes. Monochrome multiplex quantitative PCR (mmqPCR) was used to determine relative TL given as a ratio of the amount of DNA between the telomere and albumin as the housekeeping gene. We found a significant difference in the relative TL between PD patients with and without dementia, where shorter TL presented higher risk for dementia (p = 0.024). However, the correlation was not significant after adjustment for clinical factors (p = 0.509). We found no correlations between TLs and the dose of dopaminergic therapy when the analysis was adjusted for genetic variability in inflammatory or oxidative factors. In addition, TL influenced time to onset of motor complications after levodopa treatment initiation (p = 0.0134), but the association did not remain significant after adjustment for age at inclusion and disease duration (p = 0.0781). Based on the results of our study we conclude that TL contributes to certain PD-related phenotypes, although it may not have a major role in directing the course of the disease. Nevertheless, this expends currently limited knowledge regarding the association of the telomere attrition and the disease severity or motor complications in Parkinson’s disease.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document