Telomere length in subjects with schizophrenia, their unaffected siblings and healthy controls: Evidence of accelerated aging.

Schizophrenia (SZ) is associated with broad burden. The clinical manifestations of SZ are related to pathophysiological alterations similar to what is seen in normal aging. Our aim was to evaluate the differences in telomere length (TL), a biomarker of cellular aging, in subjects with SZ (n=36), unaffected siblings (SB, n=36) and healthy controls (HC, n=47). SZ had shorter TL compared to HC, but no difference was found in SB comparing to SZ. These findings indicate that a pathological accelerated aging profile could be present in the course of SZ and further studies are needed to confirm TL as potential endophenotype, especially in at risk populations.