| Title: | Measurement and initial characterization of leukocyte telomere length in 474,074 participants in UK Biobank |
| Journal: | Nature Aging |
| Published: | 17 Feb 2022 |
| Pubmed: | https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37117760/ |
| DOI: | https://doi.org/10.1038/s43587-021-00166-9 |
| URL: | https://doi.org/10.1101/2021.03.18.21253457 |
| Citations: | 102 (86 in last 2 years) as of 8 Aug 2024 |
Publication 8173
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Abstract
Leukocyte telomere length (LTL) is a proposed marker of biological age. Here we report the measurement and initial characterization of LTL in 474,074 participants in UK Biobank. We confirm that older age and male sex associate with shorter LTL, with women on average ~7 years younger in 'biological age' than men. Compared to white Europeans, LTL is markedly longer in African and Chinese ancestries. Older paternal age at birth is associated with longer individual LTL. Higher white cell count is associated with shorter LTL, but proportions of white cell subtypes show weaker associations. Age, ethnicity, sex and white cell count explain ~5.5% of LTL variance. Using paired samples from 1,351 participants taken ~5 years apart, we estimate the within-individual variability in LTL and provide a correction factor for this. This resource provides opportunities to investigate determinants and biomedical consequences of variation in LTL.</p>
9 Keywords
- Biological Specimen Banks
- Ethnicity
- Female
- Humans
- Infant, Newborn
- Leukocytes
- Male
- Telomere
- United Kingdom
23 Authors
- V. Codd
- M. Denniff
- C. Swinfield
- S. C. Warner
- M. Papakonstantinou
- S. Sheth
- D. E. Nanus
- C. A. Budgeon
- C. Musicha
- V. Bountziouka
- Q. Wang
- R. Bramley
- E. Allara
- S. Kaptoge
- S. Stoma
- T. Jiang
- A. S. Butterworth
- A. M. Wood
- E. Di Angelantonio
- J. R. Thompson
- J. N. Danesh
- C. P. Nelson
- N. J. Samani
1 Application
| Application ID | Title |
|---|---|
| 6077 | Telomere length measurement in UK Biobank: advancing understanding of biological ageing and age-related diseases |
Enabling scientific discoveries that improve human health