Cognitive Change During the Life Course and Leukocyte Telomere Length in Late Middle-aged Men.
AbstractImportance: Cognitive skills are known to decline through the lifespan with large individual differences. The molecular mechanisms for this decline are incompletely understood. Although leukocyte telomere length provides an index of cellular age that predicts the incidence of age-related dis...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2016-12-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://journal.frontiersin.org/Journal/10.3389/fnagi.2016.00300/full |
| _version_ | 1811298140565798912 |
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| author | Lene Rask Laila Bendix Maria Harbo Birgitte Fagerlund Erik Lykke Mortensen Martin Johannes Laurtizen Merete Osler |
| author_facet | Lene Rask Laila Bendix Maria Harbo Birgitte Fagerlund Erik Lykke Mortensen Martin Johannes Laurtizen Merete Osler |
| author_sort | Lene Rask |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | AbstractImportance: Cognitive skills are known to decline through the lifespan with large individual differences. The molecular mechanisms for this decline are incompletely understood. Although leukocyte telomere length provides an index of cellular age that predicts the incidence of age-related diseases, it is unclear whether there is an association between cognitive decline and leukocyte telomere length. Objective: To examine the association between changes in cognitive function during adult life and leukocyte telomere length after adjusting for confounding factors such as education, mental health and life style. Design, setting and participants: Two groups of men with negative (n=97) and positive (n=93) change in cognitive performance were selected from a birth cohort of 1985 Danish men born in 1953. Cognitive performance of each individual was assessed at age ~20 and ~56 years. Leukocyte telomere length at age ~58 was measured using qPCR. Linear regression models were used to investigate the association between cognitive function and leukocyte telomere length. Results: Men with negative change in cognitive performance during adult life had significantly shorter mean leukocyte telomere length than men with positive change in cognitive performance (unadjusted difference β= - 0.09, 95% CI -0.16 - -0.02, p= 0.02). This association remained significant after adjusting for smoking, alcohol consumption, leisure time activity, body mass index and cholesterol (adjusted difference β= -0.09, 95% CI -0.17 - -0.01, p= 0.02) but was nonsignificant after adjusting for smoking, alcohol consumption, leisure time activity, body mass index cholesterol, current cognitive function, depression and education (adjusted difference β= -0.07, 95% CI -0.16 - -0.01, p= 0.08). Conclusion and relevance: Preclinical cognitive changes may be associated with leukocyte telomere length. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-13T06:15:14Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-4ec6419f54014bad889f3c3a7a7b7fc4 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1663-4365 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-13T06:15:14Z |
| publishDate | 2016-12-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience |
| spelling | doaj.art-4ec6419f54014bad889f3c3a7a7b7fc42022-12-22T02:58:52ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience1663-43652016-12-01810.3389/fnagi.2016.00300218797Cognitive Change During the Life Course and Leukocyte Telomere Length in Late Middle-aged Men.Lene Rask0Laila Bendix1Maria Harbo2Birgitte Fagerlund3Erik Lykke Mortensen4Martin Johannes Laurtizen5Merete Osler6University of CopenhagenOdense University HospitalVejle HospitalUniversity of Copenhagen, Psychiatric Centre GlostrupUniversity of CopenhagenUniversity of CopenhagenUniversity of CopenhagenAbstractImportance: Cognitive skills are known to decline through the lifespan with large individual differences. The molecular mechanisms for this decline are incompletely understood. Although leukocyte telomere length provides an index of cellular age that predicts the incidence of age-related diseases, it is unclear whether there is an association between cognitive decline and leukocyte telomere length. Objective: To examine the association between changes in cognitive function during adult life and leukocyte telomere length after adjusting for confounding factors such as education, mental health and life style. Design, setting and participants: Two groups of men with negative (n=97) and positive (n=93) change in cognitive performance were selected from a birth cohort of 1985 Danish men born in 1953. Cognitive performance of each individual was assessed at age ~20 and ~56 years. Leukocyte telomere length at age ~58 was measured using qPCR. Linear regression models were used to investigate the association between cognitive function and leukocyte telomere length. Results: Men with negative change in cognitive performance during adult life had significantly shorter mean leukocyte telomere length than men with positive change in cognitive performance (unadjusted difference β= - 0.09, 95% CI -0.16 - -0.02, p= 0.02). This association remained significant after adjusting for smoking, alcohol consumption, leisure time activity, body mass index and cholesterol (adjusted difference β= -0.09, 95% CI -0.17 - -0.01, p= 0.02) but was nonsignificant after adjusting for smoking, alcohol consumption, leisure time activity, body mass index cholesterol, current cognitive function, depression and education (adjusted difference β= -0.07, 95% CI -0.16 - -0.01, p= 0.08). Conclusion and relevance: Preclinical cognitive changes may be associated with leukocyte telomere length.http://journal.frontiersin.org/Journal/10.3389/fnagi.2016.00300/fullAgingMental HealthCognitive Functiontelomere lengthBirth cohort study |
| spellingShingle | Lene Rask Laila Bendix Maria Harbo Birgitte Fagerlund Erik Lykke Mortensen Martin Johannes Laurtizen Merete Osler Cognitive Change During the Life Course and Leukocyte Telomere Length in Late Middle-aged Men. Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience Aging Mental Health Cognitive Function telomere length Birth cohort study |
| title | Cognitive Change During the Life Course and Leukocyte Telomere Length in Late Middle-aged Men. |
| title_full | Cognitive Change During the Life Course and Leukocyte Telomere Length in Late Middle-aged Men. |
| title_fullStr | Cognitive Change During the Life Course and Leukocyte Telomere Length in Late Middle-aged Men. |
| title_full_unstemmed | Cognitive Change During the Life Course and Leukocyte Telomere Length in Late Middle-aged Men. |
| title_short | Cognitive Change During the Life Course and Leukocyte Telomere Length in Late Middle-aged Men. |
| title_sort | cognitive change during the life course and leukocyte telomere length in late middle aged men |
| topic | Aging Mental Health Cognitive Function telomere length Birth cohort study |
| url | http://journal.frontiersin.org/Journal/10.3389/fnagi.2016.00300/full |
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