Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, National Taiwan University Hospital, Bei-Hu Branch, Taipei 100, Taiwan.
Community and Geriatric Medicine Research Center, National Taiwan University Hospital, Bei-Hu Branch, Taipei 108, Taiwan.
Nutrients. 2020 Dec 8;12(12):3766. doi: 10.3390/nu12123766.
Sarcopenia is defined as aging-related loss of muscle mass and function. Telomere length in chromosomes shortens with age and is modulated by telomeric repeat-containing RNA (TERRA). This study aimed to explore the impact of aging and sarcopenia on telomere length and TERRA expression, and changes following strengthening exercise and nutrition intervention (supplement of branched-chain amino acids, calcium and vitamin D3) for 12 weeks in the sarcopenic population. Older adults (≥65 years old) were divided into non-sarcopenic controls ( = 36) and sarcopenic individuals ( = 36) after measurement of grip strength and body composition. The relative telomere length of leukocytes in all research participants was evaluated using the T/S ratio (telomere/single copy gene), and relative TERRA expression of leukocytes was determined by reverse-transcription qPCR (RT-qPCR). Generalized estimating equation (GEE) was used to analyze the influence of sarcopenia and intervention on the outcomes. There was no significant difference in telomere length between control subjects and participants with sarcopenia. TERRA expression was lower in sarcopenic participants compared to that in non-sarcopenic controls (5.18 ± 2.98 vs. 2.51 ± 1.89; < 0.001). In the sarcopenic group, intervention significantly increased TERRA expression, but not telomere length. The GEE analysis demonstrated that TERRA expression was negatively associated with sarcopenia (β coefficient = -2.705, < 0.001) but positively associated with intervention (β coefficient = 1.599, = 0.023). Sarcopenia is associated with a decrease in TERRA expression in leukocytes. Rebound TERRA expression (returning to the level similar to the non-sarcopenic controls) was observed in the sarcopenic group after exercise and nutrition intervention. Future studies are warranted to examine the potential of TERRA as a biomarker for sarcopenia and its subsequent responses to intervention.
肌肉减少症定义为与衰老相关的肌肉质量和功能丧失。染色体中的端粒随着年龄的增长而缩短,并且受端粒重复 RNA(TERRA)调节。本研究旨在探讨衰老和肌肉减少症对端粒长度和 TERRA 表达的影响,以及在肌肉减少症患者中进行 12 周的强化运动和营养干预(补充支链氨基酸、钙和维生素 D3)后的变化。在测量握力和身体成分后,将老年人(≥65 岁)分为非肌肉减少症对照组(n=36)和肌肉减少症患者组(n=36)。使用 T/S 比值(端粒/单拷贝基因)评估所有研究参与者的白细胞相对端粒长度,并用逆转录 qPCR(RT-qPCR)测定白细胞的相对 TERRA 表达。使用广义估计方程(GEE)分析肌肉减少症和干预对结果的影响。对照组和肌肉减少症患者的端粒长度无显著差异。与非肌肉减少症对照组相比,肌肉减少症患者的 TERRA 表达较低(5.18±2.98 与 2.51±1.89;<0.001)。在肌肉减少症组中,干预显著增加了 TERRA 表达,但未增加端粒长度。GEE 分析表明,TERRA 表达与肌肉减少症呈负相关(β系数=-2.705,<0.001),与干预呈正相关(β系数=1.599,=0.023)。肌肉减少症与白细胞中 TERRA 表达降低有关。在运动和营养干预后,肌肉减少症组中观察到 TERRA 表达的反弹(恢复到与非肌肉减少症对照组相似的水平)。需要进一步的研究来探讨 TERRA 作为肌肉减少症的生物标志物及其对干预的后续反应的潜力。