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de Lange AMG, Leonardsen EH, Barth C, Schindler LS, Crestol A, Holm MC, Subramaniapillai S, Hill D, Alnæs D, Westlye LT. Parental status and markers of brain and cellular age: A 3D convolutional network and classification study. Psychoneuroendocrinology 2024; 165:107040. [PMID: 38636355 DOI: 10.1016/j.psyneuen.2024.107040] [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: 01/20/2024] [Revised: 03/29/2024] [Accepted: 03/30/2024] [Indexed: 04/20/2024]
Abstract
Recent research shows prominent effects of pregnancy and the parenthood transition on structural brain characteristics in humans. Here, we present a comprehensive study of how parental status and number of children born/fathered links to markers of brain and cellular ageing in 36,323 UK Biobank participants (age range 44.57-82.06 years; 52% female). To assess global effects of parenting on the brain, we trained a 3D convolutional neural network on T1-weighted magnetic resonance images, and estimated brain age in a held-out test set. To investigate regional specificity, we extracted cortical and subcortical volumes using FreeSurfer, and ran hierarchical clustering to group regional volumes based on covariance. Leukocyte telomere length (LTL) derived from DNA was used as a marker of cellular ageing. We employed linear regression models to assess relationships between number of children, brain age, regional brain volumes, and LTL, and included interaction terms to probe sex differences in associations. Lastly, we used the brain measures and LTL as features in binary classification models, to determine if markers of brain and cellular ageing could predict parental status. The results showed associations between a greater number of children born/fathered and younger brain age in both females and males, with stronger effects observed in females. Volume-based analyses showed maternal effects in striatal and limbic regions, which were not evident in fathers. We found no evidence for associations between number of children and LTL. Classification of parental status showed an Area under the ROC Curve (AUC) of 0.57 for the brain age model, while the models using regional brain volumes and LTL as predictors showed AUCs of 0.52. Our findings align with previous population-based studies of middle- and older-aged parents, revealing subtle but significant associations between parental experience and neuroimaging-based surrogate markers of brain health. The findings further corroborate results from longitudinal cohort studies following parents across pregnancy and postpartum, potentially indicating that the parenthood transition is associated with long-term influences on brain health.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ann-Marie G de Lange
- Department of Clinical Neurosciences, Lausanne University Hospital (CHUV) and University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland; Department of Psychology, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway; Department of Psychiatry, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK.
| | | | - Claudia Barth
- Department of Psychiatric Research, Diakonhjemmet Hospital, Oslo, Norway
| | - Louise S Schindler
- Department of Clinical Neurosciences, Lausanne University Hospital (CHUV) and University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland; Department of Psychology, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway; Department of Psychiatry, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Arielle Crestol
- Department of Psychiatric Research, Diakonhjemmet Hospital, Oslo, Norway
| | | | - Sivaniya Subramaniapillai
- Department of Clinical Neurosciences, Lausanne University Hospital (CHUV) and University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland; Department of Psychology, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
| | - Dónal Hill
- Swiss Data Science Center (SDSC), EPFL-ETHZ, Switzerland
| | - Dag Alnæs
- Department of Psychology, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway; Centre for Precision Psychiatry, Division of Mental Health and Addiction, Oslo University Hospital & Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
| | - Lars T Westlye
- Department of Psychology, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway; Centre for Precision Psychiatry, Division of Mental Health and Addiction, Oslo University Hospital & Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway; KG Jebsen Centre for Neurodevelopmental Disorders, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
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Houminer-Klepar N, Bord S, Epel E, Baron-Epel O. Are pregnancy and parity associated with telomere length? A systematic review. BMC Pregnancy Childbirth 2023; 23:733. [PMID: 37848852 PMCID: PMC10583451 DOI: 10.1186/s12884-023-06011-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/20/2023] [Accepted: 09/19/2023] [Indexed: 10/19/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Women's reproduction requires increased energy demands, which consequently may lead to cellular damage and aging. Hence, Telomere Length (TL), a biomarker of biological aging and health status may possibly serve as a biomarker of reproductive effort. The aim of this systematic review is to evaluate telomere dynamics throughout pregnancy and the association between parity and TL. METHODS A systematic search was conducted across seven databases including CINAHL, Cochrane, PsycINFO, Proquest, PubMed; Scopus; and Web of Science, using keywords and MeSH descriptors of parity and TL. Predefined inclusion and exclusion criteria were used to screen abstracts and titles. After the removal of duplicates, 3431 articles were included in the primary screening, narrowed to 194 articles included in the full-text screening. Consensus was reached for the 14 studies that were included in the final review, and the Newcastle-Ottawa scale (NOS) was utilized to assess the quality of the selected studies. A mini meta-analysis utilized JASP 0.17.3 software and included 4 applicable studies, comprising a total of 2564 participants to quantitatively assess the estimated effect size of parity on TL. RESULTS Of the 11 studies reviewed on parity and TL, four demonstrated a negative correlation; one - a positive correlation and six -found no correlation. Studies demonstrating a negative correlation encompassed rigorous methodological practices possibly suggesting having more children is associated with enhanced telomere attrition. Of the four longitudinal studies assessing telomere dynamics throughout pregnancy, most found no change in TL from early pregnancy to postpartum suggesting pregnancy does not affect TL from early pregnancy to early postpartum. The meta-analysis revealed a negative, yet, non-significant effect, of the estimated effect size of parity on TL(ES = -0.009, p = 0.126, CI -0.021, 0.03). CONCLUSIONS Studies assessing pregnancy, parity and TL yielded mixed results, most likely due to the different research methods utilized in each study. Improvements in study design to better understand the short-term effects of pregnancy on TL and the effect of parity on TL over time, include precise definitions of parity, comparisons of different age groups, inclusion of reproductive lifespan and statistically adjusting for potential confounders in the parity and TL relationship.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nourit Houminer-Klepar
- School of Public Health, Faculty of Social Welfare and Health Sciences, University of Haifa, Mount Carmel, 31905, Haifa, Israel.
| | - Shiran Bord
- Health Systems Management Department, The Max Stern Yezreel Valley College, 1930600, Yezreel Valley, Israel
| | - Elissa Epel
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of California, 675 18th St, San Francisco, CA, 94107, USA
| | - Orna Baron-Epel
- School of Public Health, Faculty of Social Welfare and Health Sciences, University of Haifa, Mount Carmel, 31905, Haifa, Israel
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Kim C, Catov J, Schreiner PJ, Appiah D, Wellons MF, Siscovick D, Calderon‐Margalit R, Huddleston H, Ebong IA, Lewis CE. Women's Reproductive Milestones and Cardiovascular Disease Risk: A Review of Reports and Opportunities From the CARDIA Study. J Am Heart Assoc 2023; 12:e028132. [PMID: 36847077 PMCID: PMC10111436 DOI: 10.1161/jaha.122.028132] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/01/2023]
Abstract
In 1985 to 1986, the CARDIA (Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults) study enrolled 5115 Black or White participants, including 2788 women, aged 18 to 30 years. Over the following 35 years, the CARDIA study amassed extensive longitudinal data on women's reproductive milestones, spanning menarche to menopause. Although not initially conceived as a study of women's health, >75 CARDIA study publications address relationships between reproductive factors and events with cardiovascular and metabolic risk factors, subclinical and clinical cardiovascular disease, and social determinants of health. The CARDIA study was one of the earliest population-based reports to note Black-White differences in age at menarche and associations with cardiovascular risk factors. Adverse pregnancy outcomes, particularly gestational diabetes and preterm birth, have been assessed along with postpartum behaviors, such as lactation. Existing studies have examined risk factors for adverse pregnancy outcomes and lactation, as well as their relationship to future cardiovascular and metabolic risk factors, diagnoses, and subclinical atherosclerosis. Ancillary studies examining components of polycystic ovary syndrome and ovarian biomarkers, such as anti-Müllerian hormone, have facilitated examination of reproductive health in a population-based cohort of young adult women. As the cohort transitioned through menopause, examination of the importance of premenopausal cardiovascular risk factors along with menopause has improved our understanding of shared mechanisms. The cohort is now aged in the 50s to mid-60s, and women will begin to experience a greater number of cardiovascular events as well as other conditions, such as cognitive impairment. Thus, in the next decade, the CARDIA study will provide a unique resource for understanding how the women's reproductive life course epidemiology informs cardiovascular risk, as well as reproductive and chronological aging.
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Affiliation(s)
- Catherine Kim
- Departments of Medicine, Obstetrics and Gynecology, and EpidemiologyUniversity of MichiganAnn ArborMI
| | - Janet Catov
- Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive SciencesUniversity of PittsburghPittsburghPA
| | - Pamela J. Schreiner
- Division of Epidemiology and Community HealthUniversity of MinnesotaMinneapolisMN
| | - Duke Appiah
- Department of Public Health, Graduate School of Biomedical SciencesTexas Tech UniversityLubbockTX
| | | | | | | | - Heather Huddleston
- Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive SciencesUniversity of California San FranciscoSan FranciscoCA
| | | | - Cora E. Lewis
- Department of EpidemiologyUniversity of Alabama at BirminghamBirminghamAL
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Nsereko E, Uwase A, Muvunyi CM, Rulisa S, Ntirushwa D, Moreland P, Corwin EJ, Santos N, Lin J, Chen JL, Nzayirambaho M, Wojcicki JM. Association between micronutrients and maternal leukocyte telomere length in early pregnancy in Rwanda. BMC Pregnancy Childbirth 2020; 20:692. [PMID: 33187486 PMCID: PMC7664098 DOI: 10.1186/s12884-020-03330-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/18/2020] [Accepted: 10/09/2020] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Exposure to environmental stressors can lead to shorter leukocyte telomere length and increase the risk of chronic diseases. Preservation of leukocyte telomere length by reducing oxidative stress exposure and reinforcing immunity may be a mechanism by which nutritional factors delay or prevent chronic disease development. METHODS Healthy pregnant women (aged 18-45 years) at 9-15 weeks of gestation living in Gasabo District, Kigali, Rwanda, were recruited from 10 health centers for a prospective, longitudinal study from September to October 2017 to determine possible associations between nutrition health, infectious disease and leukocyte telomere length. Anthropometric and laboratory measurements were performed using standard procedures; sociodemographic parameters and health histories were assessed via surveys, and leukocyte telomere length was assessed using quantitative PCR expressed as the ratio of a telomeric product to a single-copy gene product (T/S). RESULTS Mean gestational age of participants (n = 297) at enrollment was 13.04 ± 3.50 weeks, age was 28.16 ± 6.10 years and leukocyte telomere length was 1.16 ± 0.22 (T/S). Younger age; no schooling vs. primary schooling; and lower levels of ferritin, soluble transferrin receptors and retinol-binding protein were independent predictors of longer telomere length in multivariable models. CONCLUSIONS Leukocyte telomere length is an indicator of biological aging in pregnant Rwandan women. Maternal micronutrient status, specifically lower ferritin, soluble transferrin receptor levels, and retinol-binding protein levels were associated with longer maternal telomere length in contrast with some studies from North America and Europe. There were no associations between inflammation and infectious disease status and maternal leukocyte telomere length. Further studies are needed to enhance our understanding of the interplay between maternal nutritional status and infectious disease in relation to leukocyte telomere length in developing countries.
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Affiliation(s)
- Etienne Nsereko
- College of Medicine and Health Sciences School of Health Sciences, University of Rwanda, P.O. Box: 3538, Kigali, Rwanda.
| | - Aline Uwase
- College of Medicine and Health Sciences School of Health Sciences, University of Rwanda, P.O. Box: 3538, Kigali, Rwanda
| | - Claude Mambo Muvunyi
- College of Medicine and Health Sciences School of Medicine and Pharmacy, University of Rwanda, P.O. Box: 3538, Kigali, Rwanda
| | - Stephen Rulisa
- College of Medicine and Health Sciences School of Medicine and Pharmacy, University of Rwanda, P.O. Box: 3538, Kigali, Rwanda
| | - David Ntirushwa
- College of Medicine and Health Sciences School of Medicine and Pharmacy, University of Rwanda, P.O. Box: 3538, Kigali, Rwanda
| | - Patricia Moreland
- Emory University, Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing, Atlanta, Georgia, USA
| | | | - Nicole Santos
- University of California San Francisco, Institute for Global Health Sciences, San Francisco, USA
| | - Jue Lin
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, USA
| | - Jyu-Lin Chen
- Departmentof Family Health Care Nursing, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, USA
| | - Manasse Nzayirambaho
- University of Rwanda College of Medicine and Health Sciences School of Public Health, P.O. Box: 3538, Kigali, Rwanda
| | - Janet M Wojcicki
- Department of Pediatrics, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, USA.
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University of California, 550 16th Street, San Francisco, CA, 941558, USA.
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Differences in Leukocyte Telomere Length between Coronary Heart Disease and Normal Population: A Multipopulation Meta-Analysis. BIOMED RESEARCH INTERNATIONAL 2019; 2019:5046867. [PMID: 31198785 PMCID: PMC6526555 DOI: 10.1155/2019/5046867] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/31/2019] [Accepted: 04/14/2019] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
Coronary heart disease (CHD) is one of the most common causes of death in the world. Numerous studies have shown that as the degree of atherosclerotic disease increases, leukocyte telomere length gradually decreases. Short telomeres increase the risk of all-cause death and cardiovascular death. However, the reported results are not consistent, since the experimental design method, the measurement method, and the disease outcome are different. Therefore, we searched five major literature databases (Pubmed, Web of science, Embase, CNKI, and Wangfang) and finally included 18 eligible articles (including 5,150 patients with CHD and 9341 controls). We found that telomere length in patients with CHD was significantly shorter than that in controls, and the telomere length was inversely correlated with the severity of CHD. Subgroup analysis showed that telomere shortening was the most significant in Asian patients with CHD, in CHD patients with an average age <65 years, and in men with CHD. The mechanism of shortening the telomere length leading to the occurrence and development of CHD is worthy of further study.
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Ryan CP, Hayes MG, Lee NR, McDade TW, Jones MJ, Kobor MS, Kuzawa CW, Eisenberg DTA. Reproduction predicts shorter telomeres and epigenetic age acceleration among young adult women. Sci Rep 2018; 8:11100. [PMID: 30038336 PMCID: PMC6056536 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-018-29486-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 51] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/12/2018] [Accepted: 07/10/2018] [Indexed: 01/10/2023] Open
Abstract
Evolutionary theory predicts that reproduction entails costs that detract from somatic maintenance, accelerating biological aging. Despite support from studies in human and non-human animals, mechanisms linking 'costs of reproduction' (CoR) to aging are poorly understood. Human pregnancy is characterized by major alterations in metabolic regulation, oxidative stress, and immune cell proliferation. We hypothesized that these adaptations could accelerate blood-derived cellular aging. To test this hypothesis, we examined gravidity in relation to telomere length (TL, n = 821) and DNA-methylation age (DNAmAge, n = 397) in a cohort of young (20-22 year-old) Filipino women. Age-corrected TL and accelerated DNAmAge both predict age-related morbidity and mortality, and provide markers of mitotic and non-mitotic cellular aging, respectively. Consistent with theoretical predictions, TL decreased (p = 0.031) and DNAmAge increased (p = 0.007) with gravidity, a relationship that was not contingent upon resource availability. Neither biomarker was associated with subsequent fertility (both p > 0.3), broadly consistent with a causal effect of gravidity on cellular aging. Our findings provide evidence that reproduction in women carries costs in the form of accelerated aging through two independent cellular pathways.
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Affiliation(s)
- Calen P Ryan
- Department of Anthropology, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, 60208, USA.
| | - M Geoffrey Hayes
- Division of Endocrinology, Metabolism and Molecular Medicine, Department of Medicine, Northwestern University, Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, IL, 60611, USA
- Center for Genetic Medicine, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, IL, 60611, USA
| | - Nanette R Lee
- Office of Population Studies Foundation Inc., Cebu City, Philippines
- Department of Anthropology, Sociology, and History, University of San Carlos, Cebu City, Philippines
| | - Thomas W McDade
- Department of Anthropology, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, 60208, USA
- Institute for Policy Research, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, 60208, USA
- Child and Brain Development Program, Canadian Institute for Advanced Research, Toronto, ON, M5G 1Z8, Canada
| | - Meaghan J Jones
- BC Children's Hospital Research Institute, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, V5Z 4H4, Canada
| | - Michael S Kobor
- Child and Brain Development Program, Canadian Institute for Advanced Research, Toronto, ON, M5G 1Z8, Canada
- BC Children's Hospital Research Institute, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, V5Z 4H4, Canada
| | - Christopher W Kuzawa
- Department of Anthropology, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, 60208, USA
- Institute for Policy Research, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, 60208, USA
| | - Dan T A Eisenberg
- Department of Anthropology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, 98195, USA.
- Center for Studies in Demography and Ecology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, 98195, USA.
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