Ana Paula Mendes-Silva1, Erica Leandro Marciano Vieira1, Gabriela Xavier2,3, Lucelia Scarabeli Silva Barroso4, Laiss Bertola4, Efrem Augusto Ribeiro Martins4, Elisa Macedo Brietzke5,6, Sintia Iole Nogueira Belangero2,3, Breno Satler Diniz1,7,8,9. 1. Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH), Toronto, Ontario, Canada. 2. Department of Morphology and Genetics, Federal University of São Paulo, São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil. 3. LINC-Interdisciplinary Laboratory of Clinical Neurosciences, Federal University of São Paulo, São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil. 4. Graduate Program in Molecular Medicine, Federal University of Minas Gerais School of Medicine, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil. 5. Department of Psychiatry, Queen's University School of Medicine, Kingston, Ontario, Canada. 6. Centre for Neuroscience Studies (CNS), Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario, Canada. 7. Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada. 8. UConn Center on Aging, University of Connecticut Health Center, Farmington, Connecticut, USA. 9. Department of Psychiatry, University of Connecticut Health Center, Farmington, Connecticut, USA.
Abstract
OBJECTIVES: Telomeres are structures at the extremity of chromosomes that prevents genomic instability, and its shortening seems to be a hallmark of cellular aging. Past studies have shown contradictory results of telomere length (TL) in major depression, and are a few studies in late-life depression (LLD). This explores the association between TL as a molecular marker of aging and diagnosis of LLD, the severity of depressive symptoms, and cognitive performance in older adults. METHODS/ DESIGN: We included 78 older adults (45 with LLD and 33 nondepressed controls, according to DSM-V criteria), aged 60-90 years. TL was measured in leukocytes by a quantitative polymerase chain reaction, determining the relative ratio (T/S) between the telomere region copy number (T) and a single copy gene (S), using a relative standard curve. RESULTS: TL was significantly shorter in the LLD compared with control participants (p = .039). Comparing groups through the severity of depressive symptoms, we found a negative correlation with the severity of depressive symptoms (Hamilton Depression Rating Scale-21, r = -0.325, p = .004) and medical burden (r = -0.271, p = .038). There was no significant correlation between TL and cognitive performance (Mattis Dementia Rating Scale, r = 0.152, p = .21). CONCLUSIONS: We found that older adults with LLD have shorter telomere than healthy controls, especially those with a more severe depressive episode. Our findings suggest that shorter TL can be a marker of the severity of depressive episodes in older adults and indicate that these individuals may be at higher risk of age-associated adverse outcomes linked to depression.
OBJECTIVES: Telomeres are structures at the extremity of chromosomes that prevents genomic instability, and its shortening seems to be a hallmark of cellular aging. Past studies have shown contradictory results of telomere length (TL) in major depression, and are a few studies in late-life depression (LLD). This explores the association between TL as a molecular marker of aging and diagnosis of LLD, the severity of depressive symptoms, and cognitive performance in older adults. METHODS/ DESIGN: We included 78 older adults (45 with LLD and 33 nondepressed controls, according to DSM-V criteria), aged 60-90 years. TL was measured in leukocytes by a quantitative polymerase chain reaction, determining the relative ratio (T/S) between the telomere region copy number (T) and a single copy gene (S), using a relative standard curve. RESULTS: TL was significantly shorter in the LLD compared with control participants (p = .039). Comparing groups through the severity of depressive symptoms, we found a negative correlation with the severity of depressive symptoms (Hamilton Depression Rating Scale-21, r = -0.325, p = .004) and medical burden (r = -0.271, p = .038). There was no significant correlation between TL and cognitive performance (Mattis Dementia Rating Scale, r = 0.152, p = .21). CONCLUSIONS: We found that older adults with LLD have shorter telomere than healthy controls, especially those with a more severe depressive episode. Our findings suggest that shorter TL can be a marker of the severity of depressive episodes in older adults and indicate that these individuals may be at higher risk of age-associated adverse outcomes linked to depression.
Authors: Breno S Diniz; Benoit H Mulsant; Charles F Reynolds; Daniel M Blumberger; Jordan F Karp; Meryl A Butters; Ana Paula Mendes-Silva; Erica L Vieira; George Tseng; Eric J Lenze Journal: JAMA Netw Open Date: 2022-06-01