Line Hjort1,2,3, Regan Vryer4, Louise G Grunnet5,6, David Burgner4,7,8, Sjurdur F Olsen9,10, Richard Saffery4,7, Allan Vaag5,11. 1. Department of Endocrinology (Diabetes and Metabolism), Section 7652, Rigshospitalet, Copenhagen University Hospital, Blegdamsvej 9, DK-2100, Copenhagen, Denmark. line.hjort@regionh.dk. 2. Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark. line.hjort@regionh.dk. 3. The Danish Diabetes Academy, Odense, Denmark. line.hjort@regionh.dk. 4. Murdoch Children's Research Institute, Parkville, Melbourne, VIC, Australia. 5. Department of Endocrinology (Diabetes and Metabolism), Section 7652, Rigshospitalet, Copenhagen University Hospital, Blegdamsvej 9, DK-2100, Copenhagen, Denmark. 6. The Danish Diabetes Academy, Odense, Denmark. 7. Department of Paediatrics, Melbourne University, Melbourne, VIC, Australia. 8. Department of Paediatrics, Monash University, Clayton, VIC, Australia. 9. Centre for Fetal Programming, Statens Serum Institut, Copenhagen, Denmark. 10. Department of Nutrition, Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA. 11. AstraZeneca, Innovative Medicines, Early Clinical Development, Gothenburg, Sweden.
Abstract
AIMS/HYPOTHESIS: Shortened telomere length is a marker of cell damage and is associated with oxidative stress, chronic inflammation and metabolic disease. We hypothesised that the offspring of women with gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) with increased risk of cardiovascular and metabolic diseases might exhibit shorter telomere length. METHODS: We investigated telomere length in 439 GDM and 469 control group offspring, aged between 9 and 16 years, recruited from the Danish National Birth Cohort. Relative telomere length was measured in peripheral blood DNA (n = 908) using a quantitative PCR approach. Multivariate regression analysis was used to investigate the association between mothers' GDM status and telomere length in the offspring. RESULTS: Female offspring had longer telomeres than males. Offspring of mothers with GDM had significantly shorter telomere length than control offspring, but this difference was observed only in girls. There was a negative association between telomere length and GDM exposure among the female offspring (14% shorter telomeres, p = 0.003) following adjustment for the age of the offspring. Telomere length in female offspring was negatively associated with fasting insulin levels and HOMA-IR (p = 0.03). Maternal age, smoking, gestational age, birthweight and the offspring's anthropometric characteristics were not associated with telomere length (p ≥ 0.1). CONCLUSIONS/ INTERPRETATION: The 9- to 16-year-old girls of mothers with GDM had shorter telomeres than those from the control population. Further studies are needed to understand the extent to which shortened telomere length predicts and/or contributes to the increased risk of disease later in life among the offspring of women with GDM.
AIMS/HYPOTHESIS: Shortened telomere length is a marker of cell damage and is associated with oxidative stress, chronic inflammation and metabolic disease. We hypothesised that the offspring of women with gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) with increased risk of cardiovascular and metabolic diseases might exhibit shorter telomere length. METHODS: We investigated telomere length in 439 GDM and 469 control group offspring, aged between 9 and 16 years, recruited from the Danish National Birth Cohort. Relative telomere length was measured in peripheral blood DNA (n = 908) using a quantitative PCR approach. Multivariate regression analysis was used to investigate the association between mothers' GDM status and telomere length in the offspring. RESULTS: Female offspring had longer telomeres than males. Offspring of mothers with GDM had significantly shorter telomere length than control offspring, but this difference was observed only in girls. There was a negative association between telomere length and GDM exposure among the female offspring (14% shorter telomeres, p = 0.003) following adjustment for the age of the offspring. Telomere length in female offspring was negatively associated with fasting insulin levels and HOMA-IR (p = 0.03). Maternal age, smoking, gestational age, birthweight and the offspring's anthropometric characteristics were not associated with telomere length (p ≥ 0.1). CONCLUSIONS/ INTERPRETATION: The 9- to 16-year-old girls of mothers with GDM had shorter telomeres than those from the control population. Further studies are needed to understand the extent to which shortened telomere length predicts and/or contributes to the increased risk of disease later in life among the offspring of women with GDM.
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