Telomerase, telomere length, and coronary artery calcium in black and white men in the CARDIA study.
Level 3 - non-randomized controlled study
Prospective cohort study with longitudinal follow-up examining biomarker associations with coronary calcium
PubMed 22178426 · doi:10.1016/j.atherosclerosis.2011.10.041
What was done
Leukocyte telomerase activity was measured at year 15 of the CARDIA study in 440 Black and White men aged 33–45 years. Telomere length was measured in a subset of 129 participants. Researchers evaluated multivariate-adjusted associations of telomerase activity with prevalent coronary artery calcium (CAC) at year 15, progressive CAC at year 20, and incident CAC between years 15 and 20.
What was found
Higher quartiles of telomerase activity were cross-sectionally associated with higher odds of prevalent CAC at year 15 relative to quartile 1: quartile 2 OR was 1.32 (95% CI: 0.54–3.23), quartile 3 OR was 1.40 (95% CI: 0.60–3.30), and quartile 4 OR was 3.27 (95% CI: 1.39–7.71; p-continuous = 0.012). Higher telomerase also predicted greater CAC progression at year 20 among men with short telomere length, whereas low telomerase and short telomeres predicted less progression. Telomerase was not significantly associated with incident CAC.
Why it matters
This study suggests that increased leukocyte telomerase activity may accompany existing atherosclerotic calcification and interact with telomere shortening during plaque progression, rather than serving as an early indicator of plaque initiation.
Limits
The study was restricted to men aged 33–45 years, limiting generalizability to women and older populations. Telomere length was measured only in a subset (n = 129). The abstract does not report numerical risk estimates or confidence intervals for CAC progression or the telomere interaction.
Cited by
- supports Telomerase activity measured in normal peripheral blood cells is associated with metabolic health and socioeconomic circumstances.