Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of California, San Francisco, CA, USA.
Division of Prevention Science | Department of Medicine, University of California, San Francisco, CA, USA.
Psychol Med. 2023 Dec;53(16):7720-7728. doi: 10.1017/S0033291723001629. Epub 2023 Jun 16.
The current study examined if early adversity was associated with accelerated biological aging, and if effects were mediated by the timing of puberty.
In early mid-life, 187 Black and 198 White ( = 39.4, s.d. = 1.2) women reported on early abuse and age at first menstruation (menarche). Women provided saliva and blood to assess epigenetic aging, telomere length, and C-reactive protein. Using structural equation modeling, we created a latent variable of biological aging using epigenetic aging, telomere length, and C-reactive protein as indicators, and a latent variable of early abuse using indicators of abuse/threat events before age 13, physical abuse, and sexual abuse. We estimated the indirect effects of early abuse and of race on accelerated aging through age at menarche. Race was used as a proxy for adversity in the form of systemic racism.
There was an indirect effect of early adversity on accelerated aging through age at menarche ( = 0.19, 95% CI 0.03-0.44), in that women who experienced more adversity were younger at menarche, which was associated with greater accelerated aging. There was also an indirect effect of race on accelerated aging through age at menarche ( = 0.25, 95% CI 0.04-0.52), in that Black women were younger at menarche, which led to greater accelerated aging.
Early abuse and being Black in the USA may both induce a phenotype of accelerated aging. Early adversity may begin to accelerate aging during childhood, in the form of early pubertal timing.
本研究旨在探讨早期逆境是否与生物衰老加速有关，以及这种影响是否通过青春期开始的时间来介导。
在中年早期，187 名黑人女性和 198 名白人女性（ = 39.4，标准差 = 1.2）报告了早期虐待和初潮年龄（初潮）。女性提供唾液和血液样本，以评估表观遗传衰老、端粒长度和 C 反应蛋白。我们使用结构方程模型，使用表观遗传衰老、端粒长度和 C 反应蛋白作为指标创建生物衰老的潜在变量，使用 13 岁前的虐待/威胁事件、身体虐待和性虐待的指标创建早期虐待的潜在变量。我们通过初潮年龄来估计早期虐待和种族对加速衰老的间接影响。种族被用作系统性种族主义形式的逆境的代理。
早期逆境通过初潮年龄对加速衰老有间接影响（ = 0.19，95%置信区间 0.03-0.44），即经历更多逆境的女性初潮年龄更早，这与更大的加速衰老有关。种族通过初潮年龄对加速衰老也有间接影响（ = 0.25，95%置信区间 0.04-0.52），即黑人女性初潮年龄更早，导致更大的加速衰老。
美国的早期虐待和黑人身份可能都会导致加速衰老的表型。早期逆境可能会在儿童时期通过早期青春期开始的时间来加速衰老。
