Telomeres and the heart
It is believed that the end sections of DNA – telomeres – protect chromosomes from destruction and fusion with other chromosomes. With each cell division, telomeres shorten, and their length serves as an indicator of the biological age of the cell.
New data obtained by researchers from Brigham Women's Hospital (Boston, Massachusetts), working under the leadership of Christian T. Ruff, indicate the existence of a pronounced relationship between telomere shortening and an unfavorable prognosis in patients with acute coronary syndrome (a group of clinical signs or symptoms caused by coronary artery thrombosis, allowing to suspect acute myocardial infarction or unstable angina).
As part of the work, scientists measured the length of telomeres in the cells of 5044 patients with acute coronary syndrome, whose condition was subsequently monitored for 18 months. At the end of the follow-up period, the risk of death due to disorders of the cardiovascular system or myocardial infarction was analyzed, depending on the length of telomeres and other parameters.
The relationship between short telomere length and old age, male sex, smoking before the onset of symptoms of heart disease was revealed. However, the correlation between each of the individual factors and telomere length was moderate. Old age, for example, was responsible for only 7% of telomere length variability.
At the same time, the existence of a pronounced relationship between the short length of telomeres and the risk of death due to disorders of the cardiovascular system or myocardial infarction was revealed. This pattern was observed in all age groups.
Researchers believe that measuring the length of telomeres can be a very useful tool for predicting the course of cardiovascular diseases in a clinical setting. According to Raff, the shortening of telomeres is a kind of "biological clock" reflecting the effects of the complex influence of genetic factors on the body and stress effects from the environment that can contribute to the disruption of the cardiovascular system.
The authors plan to continue studying the revealed relationship, including considering a more heterogeneous patient population. They are also going to check whether the rate of telomere shortening is also a prognostic factor for the adverse development of events for patients with diseases of the cardiovascular system.
The results of the work were presented at the annual scientific session of the American College of Cardiology held on March 24-26 in Chicago.
Evgeniya Ryabtseva
Portal "Eternal Youth" based on the materials of MedicalNewsToday: Scientists Link Chromosome Length To Heart Disease Risk.
27.03.2012