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Lis N, Lamnisos D, Bograkou-Tzanetakou A, Hadjimbei E, Tzanetakou IP. Preterm Birth and Its Association with Maternal Diet, and Placental and Neonatal Telomere Length. Nutrients 2023; 15:4975. [PMID: 38068836 PMCID: PMC10708229 DOI: 10.3390/nu15234975] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/06/2023] [Revised: 11/28/2023] [Accepted: 11/29/2023] [Indexed: 12/18/2023] Open
Abstract
Preterm birth (PTB), a multi-causal syndrome, is one of the global epidemics. Maternal nutrition, but also neonatal and placental telomere length (TL), are among the factors affecting PTB risk. However, the exact relationship between these factors and the PTB outcome, remains obscure. The aim of this review was to investigate the association between PTB, maternal nutrition, and placental-infant TL. Observational studies were sought with the keywords: maternal nutrition, placental TL, newborn, TL, and PTB. No studies were found that included all of the keywords simultaneously, and thus, the keywords were searched in dyads, to reach assumptive conclusions. The findings show that maternal nutrition affects PTB risk, through its influence on maternal TL. On the other hand, maternal TL independently affects PTB risk, and at the same time PTB is a major determinant of offspring TL regulation. The strength of the associations, and the extent of the influence from covariates, remains to be elucidated in future research. Furthermore, the question of whether maternal TL is simply a biomarker of maternal nutritional status and PTB risk, or a causative factor of PTB, to date, remains to be answered.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nikoletta Lis
- Department of Health Sciences, European University Cyprus, Nicosia 2404, Cyprus; (N.L.); (D.L.)
- Maternity Clinic, Cork University Maternity Hospital, T12 YE02 Cork, Ireland
| | - Demetris Lamnisos
- Department of Health Sciences, European University Cyprus, Nicosia 2404, Cyprus; (N.L.); (D.L.)
| | | | - Elena Hadjimbei
- Department of Life Sciences, European University Cyprus, Nicosia 2404, Cyprus;
| | - Irene P. Tzanetakou
- Department of Life Sciences, European University Cyprus, Nicosia 2404, Cyprus;
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Prasad A, Lin J, Jelliffe-Pawlowski L, Coleman-Phox K, Rand L, Wojcicki JM. Sub-optimal maternal gestational gain is associated with shorter leukocyte telomere length at birth in a predominantly Latinx cohort of newborns. Matern Health Neonatol Perinatol 2023; 9:14. [PMID: 37919818 PMCID: PMC10623801 DOI: 10.1186/s40748-023-00167-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/11/2023] [Accepted: 09/20/2023] [Indexed: 11/04/2023] Open
Abstract
OBJECTIVE To assess in utero exposures associated with leukocyte telomere length (LTL) at birth and maternal LTL in a primarily Latinx birth cohort. STUDY DESIGN Mothers and newborns were recruited postnatally before 24 h of life. Newborn LTL was collected via heelstick at birth and maternal LTL was collected postnatally. LTL was determined by quantitative PCR. Using a longitudinal design, we evaluated associations between neonatal and maternal LTL and appropriate maternal gestational gain as indicated by the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology (ACOG). RESULT Mean infant LTL was 2.02 ± 0.30 T/S (n = 386) and maternal LTL was 1.54 ± 0.26 T/S (n = 58). Independent risk factors for shorter LTL at birth included longer gestational duration (Coeff:-0.03, 95%CI: -0.05-0.01;p < 0.01) and maternal gestational weight gain below ACOG recommendations (Coeff:-0.10, 95%CI: -0.18 - -0.02; p = 0.01). CONCLUSION Gestational weight gain below ACOG recommendations may adversely impact neonatal health in Latinx infants as indicated by shorter LTL at birth.
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Affiliation(s)
- Apurva Prasad
- Division of Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition, Department of Pediatrics, University of California, San Francisco, USA
| | - Jue Lin
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, University of California, San Francisco, USA
| | - Laura Jelliffe-Pawlowski
- Preterm Birth Initiative, University of California, San Francisco, USA
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University of California, San Francisco, USA
| | - Kimberley Coleman-Phox
- Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Health Sciences, University of California, San Francisco, USA
| | - Larry Rand
- Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Health Sciences, University of California, San Francisco, USA
| | - Janet M Wojcicki
- Division of Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition, Department of Pediatrics, University of California, San Francisco, USA.
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University of California, San Francisco, USA.
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Gao S, Rohr JK, de Vivo I, Ramsay M, Krieger N, Kabudula CW, Farrell MT, Bassil DT, Harriman NW, Corona-Perez D, Pesic K, Berkman LF. Telomere Length, Health, and Mortality in a Cohort of Older Black South African Adults. J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci 2023; 78:1983-1990. [PMID: 37352164 PMCID: PMC10613001 DOI: 10.1093/gerona/glad153] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/10/2023] [Indexed: 06/25/2023] Open
Abstract
Telomere length (TL) may be a biomarker of aging processes as well as age-related diseases. However, most studies of TL and aging are conducted in high-income countries. Less is known in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) such as South Africa, where life expectancy remains lower despite population aging. We conducted a descriptive analysis of TL in a cohort of older adults in rural South Africa. TL was assayed from venous blood draws using quantitative polymerase chain reaction (T/S ratio). We examined the correlation between TL and biomarkers, demographic characteristics, mental/cognitive health measures, and physical performance measures in a subsample of the Wave 1 2014-2015 "Health and Aging in Africa: A Longitudinal Study of an INDEPTH Community in South Africa" (HAALSI) cohort (n = 510). We used logistic regression to measure the association between TL and mortality through Wave 3 (2021-2022). In bivariate analyses, TL was significantly correlated with age (r = -0.29, p < .0001), self-reported female sex (r = 0.13, p = .002), mortality (r = -0.1297, p = .003), diastolic blood pressure (r = 0.09, p = .037), pulse pressure (r = -0.09, p = .045), and being a grandparent (r = -0.17, p = .0001). TL was significantly associated with age (β = -0.003; 95% confidence interval [CI] = -0.005, -0.003). TL was significantly associated in unadjusted multivariate analyses with mortality, but the relationship between TL and mortality was attenuated after adjusting for age (odds ratio [OR] = 0.19; 95% CI = 0.03, 1.27) and other covariates (OR = 0.17; 95% CI = 0.02, 1.19). Our study is the first analysis of TL in an older adult South African population. Our results corroborate existing relationships between TL and age, sex, cardiometabolic disease, and mortality found in higher-income countries.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sarah Gao
- Harvard Center for Population and Development Studies, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Julia K Rohr
- Harvard Center for Population and Development Studies, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Immaculata de Vivo
- Department of Epidemiology, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Michele Ramsay
- Sydney Brenner Institute for Molecular Science, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | - Nancy Krieger
- Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | | | - Meagan T Farrell
- Harvard Center for Population and Development Studies, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Darina T Bassil
- Harvard Center for Population and Development Studies, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Nigel W Harriman
- Harvard Center for Population and Development Studies, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Diana Corona-Perez
- Department of Epidemiology, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Katarina Pesic
- Department of Epidemiology, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Lisa F Berkman
- Harvard Center for Population and Development Studies, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA
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Han X, Wu T, Liu CY. Univariable and multivariable Mendelian randomization investigating the effects of telomere length on the risk of adverse pregnancy outcomes. Front Endocrinol (Lausanne) 2023; 14:1225600. [PMID: 37600718 PMCID: PMC10435990 DOI: 10.3389/fendo.2023.1225600] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/19/2023] [Accepted: 07/17/2023] [Indexed: 08/22/2023] Open
Abstract
Background Numerous observational studies have revealed a correlation between telomere length (TL) and adverse pregnancy outcomes (APOs). However, the impacts of TL on APOs are still unclear. Methods Mendelian randomization (MR) was carried out using summary data from genome-wide association studies (GWAS). Inverse variance weighted (IVW) was employed as the primary analysis to explore the causal relationship between TL and APOs. The exposure data came from a GWAS dataset of IEU analysis of the United Kingdom Biobank phenotypes consisting of 472,174 European participants. Summary-level data for five APOs were obtained from the GWAS datasets of the FinnGen consortium. We also performed multivariate MR (MVMR), adjusting for smoking, alcohol intake, body mass index (BMI), and number of live births. In addition, we conducted a series of rigorous analyses to further examine the validity of our MR findings. Results After Bonferroni correction and rigorous quality control, univariable MR (UVMR) demonstrated that a shorter TL was significantly associated with an increased risk of spontaneous abortion (SA) (odds ratio [OR]: 0.815; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.714-0.930; P = 0.002) and preterm birth (PTB) (OR: 0.758; 95% CI: 0.632-0.908; P = 0.003) in the IVW model. There was a nominally significant relationship between TL and preeclampsia (PE) in the IVW model (OR: 0.799; 95% CI: 0.651-0.979; P = 0.031). However, no significant association was found between TL and gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) (OR: 0.950; 95% CI: 0.804-1.122; P = 0.543) or fetal growth restriction (FGR) (OR: 1.187; 95% CI: 0.901-1.565; P = 0.223) among the five statistical models. Furthermore, we did not find a significant causal effect of APOs on TL in the reverse MR analysis. MVMR analysis showed that the causal effects of TL on SA remained significant after accounting for smoking, alcohol intake, BMI, and number of live births. Conclusion Our MR study provides robust evidence that shorter telomeres were associated with an increased risk of SA. Further work is necessary to investigate the potential mechanisms. UVMR and MVMR findings showed limited evidence that TL affects the risk of PTB, PE, GDM, and FGR, illustrating that the outcomes of previous observational studies may have been confounded.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xinyu Han
- Department of First Clinical Medical College, Heilongjiang University of Chinese Medicine, Harbin, China
| | - Tianqiang Wu
- Department of First Clinical Medical College, Heilongjiang University of Chinese Medicine, Harbin, China
| | - Chun yan Liu
- Department of Endocrinology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Heilongjiang University of Chinese Medicine, Harbin, China
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Panelli DM, Diwan M, Cruz GI, Leonard SA, Chueh J, Gotlib IH, Bianco K. An exploratory analysis of leukocyte telomere length among pregnant and non-pregnant people. Brain Behav Immun Health 2022; 25:100506. [PMID: 36110146 PMCID: PMC9467886 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbih.2022.100506] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/04/2022] [Revised: 08/15/2022] [Accepted: 08/23/2022] [Indexed: 11/26/2022] Open
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Abstract
PURPOSE OF REVIEW Telomere biology is an emerging area of scientific interest. Telomeres are deoxynucleic acid caps at the ends of chromosomes that naturally shorten over one's lifespan; because of this, short telomeres have been studied as a marker of cellular aging. Given the association between short telomeres and genetic and environmental factors, their role in pregnancy has become an intriguing area of research. RECENT FINDINGS This review describes recent data on telomeres in pregnancy. Specifically, we discuss the association between short maternal leukocyte telomeres and poor nutritional status, between short neonatal telomeres and greater maternal psychosocial stress, and between shorter fetal amniotic membrane telomeres and the spontaneous onset of parturition. We also review recent studies suggesting that events during pregnancy can impact telomeres in the offspring years into the future. SUMMARY Telomere length varies in maternal, placental, and neonatal cells, but within each of these compartments telomeres may play their own distinct role during pregnancy. Whether telomeres are reflective of the cumulative impact of stressors, or part of an as-yet unknown fetal programming mechanism is an area of interest. With future research, we may work toward a better understanding of gestational biology which could have far reaching intergenerational impacts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Danielle M. Panelli
- Division of Maternal-Fetal Medicine and Obstetrics, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Katherine BIANCO
- Division of Maternal-Fetal Medicine and Obstetrics, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
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