Kari A Weber1, Christopher M Heaphy2,3, Corinne E Joshu1,3, Jiayun Lu1, Sabine Rohrmann4, Jessica L Bienstock5, Tanya Agurs-Collins6, Alan K Meeker2,7,3, Elizabeth A Platz8,9,10. 1. Department of Epidemiology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, 615 N. Wolfe Street, Baltimore, MD, 21205, USA. 2. Department of Pathology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, 600 N. Wolfe Street, Baltimore, MD, 21287, USA. 3. Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center at Johns Hopkins, 401 N Broadway, Baltimore, MD, 21287, USA. 4. Division of Chronic Disease Epidemiology; Epidemiology, Biostatistics and Prevention Institute, University of Zurich, Hirschengraben 84, 8001, Zurich, Switzerland. 5. Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, 600 N Wolfe St, Baltimore, MD, 21287, USA. 6. Division of Cancer Control and Population Sciences, National Cancer Institute, 9609 Medical Center Drive, Bethesda, MD, 20892, USA. 7. Department of Urology and the James Buchanan Brady Urological Institute, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, 600 N. Wolfe Street, Baltimore, MD, 21287, USA. 8. Department of Epidemiology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, 615 N. Wolfe Street, Baltimore, MD, 21205, USA. eplatz1@jhu.edu. 9. Department of Urology and the James Buchanan Brady Urological Institute, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, 600 N. Wolfe Street, Baltimore, MD, 21287, USA. eplatz1@jhu.edu. 10. Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center at Johns Hopkins, 401 N Broadway, Baltimore, MD, 21287, USA. eplatz1@jhu.edu.
Abstract
PURPOSE: Telomere length at birth sets the baseline for telomere shortening and may influence adult disease risk like cancer. Telomere length is heritable, but may also be a marker of exposures in utero, including those influencing racial differences in risk. We examined racial differences in telomere length in maternal and umbilical cord blood from male neonates, and maternal-neonate correlations to generate hypotheses. METHODS: Black and white pregnant women were recruited in 2006-2007 and followed to postpartum. Data came from questionnaires and medical records. Relative telomere length was measured by qPCR in leukocyte DNA. We estimated mean telomere length in mothers and neonates (n = 55 pairs) using linear regression and maternal-cord blood Spearman correlations, overall and by race. RESULTS: Black mothers had shorter age- and plate-adjusted telomere length (2.49, 95% CI 2.11-2.86) than whites (2.92, 95% CI 2.63-3.22; p = 0.1) and black neonates had shorter telomere length (2.58, 95% CI 2.16-3.01) than whites (3.13, 95% CI 2.79-3.47; p = 0.1), though not statistically significant. Differences were attenuated after further adjustment for maternal factors. Maternal-cord blood correlations were moderate (r = 0.53, p < 0.0001), and did not differ by race. CONCLUSION: Telomere length may differ by race at birth due to both inherited and racial differences in maternal factors. This study was for hypothesis generation and results should be followed up in larger studies.
PURPOSE: Telomere length at birth sets the baseline for telomere shortening and may influence adult disease risk like cancer. Telomere length is heritable, but may also be a marker of exposures in utero, including those influencing racial differences in risk. We examined racial differences in telomere length in maternal and umbilical cord blood from male neonates, and maternal-neonate correlations to generate hypotheses. METHODS: Black and white pregnant women were recruited in 2006-2007 and followed to postpartum. Data came from questionnaires and medical records. Relative telomere length was measured by qPCR in leukocyte DNA. We estimated mean telomere length in mothers and neonates (n = 55 pairs) using linear regression and maternal-cord blood Spearman correlations, overall and by race. RESULTS: Black mothers had shorter age- and plate-adjusted telomere length (2.49, 95% CI 2.11-2.86) than whites (2.92, 95% CI 2.63-3.22; p = 0.1) and black neonates had shorter telomere length (2.58, 95% CI 2.16-3.01) than whites (3.13, 95% CI 2.79-3.47; p = 0.1), though not statistically significant. Differences were attenuated after further adjustment for maternal factors. Maternal-cord blood correlations were moderate (r = 0.53, p < 0.0001), and did not differ by race. CONCLUSION: Telomere length may differ by race at birth due to both inherited and racial differences in maternal factors. This study was for hypothesis generation and results should be followed up in larger studies.
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