Department of Family Medicine, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, USA.
Am J Cardiol. 2010 Sep 1;106(5):659-63. doi: 10.1016/j.amjcard.2010.04.018.
The telomere length is an indicator of biologic aging, and shorter telomeres have been associated with coronary artery calcium (CAC), a validated indicator of coronary atherosclerosis. It is unclear, however, whether healthy lifestyle behaviors affect the relation between telomere length and CAC. In a sample of subjects aged 40 to 64 years with no previous diagnosis of coronary heart disease, stroke, diabetes mellitus, or cancer (n = 318), healthy lifestyle behaviors of greater fruit and vegetable consumption, lower meat consumption, exercise, being at a healthy weight, and the presence of social support were examined to determine whether they attenuated the association between a shorter telomere length and the presence of CAC. Logistic regression analyses controlling for age, gender, race/ethnicity, and Framingham risk score revealed that the relation between having shorter telomeres and the presence of CAC was attenuated in the presence of high social support, low meat consumption, and high fruit and vegetable consumption. Those with shorter telomeres and these characteristics were not significantly different from those with longer telomeres. Conversely, the subjects with shorter telomeres and less healthy lifestyles had a significantly increased risk of the presence of CAC: low fruit and vegetable consumption (odds ratio 3.30, 95% confidence interval 1.61 to 6.75), high meat consumption (odds ratio 3.33, 95% confidence interval 1.54 to 7.20), and low social support (odds ratio 2.58, 95% confidence interval 1.24 to 5.37). Stratification by gender yielded similar results for men; however, among women, only fruit and vegetable consumption attenuated the shorter telomere length and CAC relation. In conclusion, the results of the present study suggest that being involved in healthy lifestyle behaviors might attenuate the association between shorter telomere length and coronary atherosclerosis, as identified using CAC.
端粒长度是生物衰老的一个指标，而较短的端粒与冠状动脉钙（CAC）有关，CAC 是冠状动脉粥样硬化的一个已验证的指标。然而，目前尚不清楚健康的生活方式行为是否会影响端粒长度与 CAC 之间的关系。在一个没有冠心病、中风、糖尿病或癌症既往诊断的 40 至 64 岁受试者样本中（n=318），研究了更多的水果和蔬菜摄入、较低的肉类摄入、运动、健康体重和社会支持等健康生活方式行为，以确定它们是否会减弱端粒较短与 CAC 存在之间的关联。控制年龄、性别、种族/民族和弗雷明汉风险评分的 logistic 回归分析显示，在存在高社会支持、低肉类摄入和高水果和蔬菜摄入的情况下，端粒较短与 CAC 存在之间的关系减弱。那些端粒较短且具有这些特征的人与端粒较长的人没有显著差异。相反，端粒较短且生活方式不太健康的受试者 CAC 存在的风险显著增加：低水果和蔬菜摄入（比值比 3.30，95%置信区间 1.61 至 6.75）、高肉类摄入（比值比 3.33，95%置信区间 1.54 至 7.20）和低社会支持（比值比 2.58，95%置信区间 1.24 至 5.37）。按性别分层的结果与男性相似；然而，在女性中，只有水果和蔬菜摄入会减弱端粒较短与 CAC 之间的关系。总之，本研究的结果表明，参与健康的生活方式行为可能会减弱端粒较短与冠状动脉粥样硬化之间的关联，这是通过 CAC 来确定的。
