Fragkiadaki Persefoni, Apetroaei Miruna-Maria, Kouvidi Elisavet, Vakonaki Elena, Renieri Elissavet, Fragkiadoulaki Irene, Spanakis Marios, Baliou Stella, Alegakis Athanasios, Tsatsakis Aristidis
Laboratory of Toxicology and Forensic Sciences, Medical School, University of Crete, Heraklion, Greece,
Lifeplus S.A., Heraklion, Greece,
Cytogenet Genome Res. 2024;164(5-6):202-210. doi: 10.1159/000542795. Epub 2024 Dec 11.
Telomeres, repetitive DNA sequences at chromosome ends, shorten with cell division, countered by telomerase. Short telomeres are linked to cardiovascular disease (CVD), alongside its risk factors like aging, hypertension, diabetes, obesity, inactivity, and smoking. Many studies have claimed the implication of telomere length (TL) in cardiac diseases. This study examined TL's impact on heart conditions using quantitative fluorescence in situ hybridization (Q-FISH) technology.
Thirteen CVD patients (nine men and four women) aged 30-70 years and aged-matched healthy participants from the BIOTEL population TL database, were included in the study. Each chromosome's TL from peripheral blood cells was measured using metaphase Q-FISH. An independent sample t test was used to compare participants' mean or median TL with various medical factors and habits.
The mean TL of whole and short telomeres in cardiac disease patients was lower compared to aged-matched healthy controls; however, there was no statistical significance due to the limited patient sample. The mean TL of short telomeres in cardiac disease patients showed a remarkable decline with advanced age. Accordingly, the mean TL of whole and short telomeres in patients with cardiac diseases showed a similar reduced trend.
In our study, shorter TL was observed in cardiac disease patients compared to those of healthy controls by using metaphase Q-FISH. However, more cases need to be studied to elucidate the use of TL as a potential biomarker for the diagnosis of patients with CVD.
端粒是染色体末端的重复DNA序列，会随着细胞分裂而缩短，端粒酶可对此进行抵消。短端粒与心血管疾病（CVD）相关，同时也与衰老、高血压、糖尿病、肥胖、缺乏运动和吸烟等风险因素有关。许多研究都表明端粒长度（TL）与心脏疾病有关。本研究使用定量荧光原位杂交（Q-FISH）技术检测了TL对心脏状况的影响。
本研究纳入了13名年龄在30至70岁之间的CVD患者（9名男性和4名女性）以及来自BIOTEL人群TL数据库的年龄匹配的健康参与者。使用中期Q-FISH测量外周血细胞中每条染色体的TL。采用独立样本t检验比较参与者的平均或中位数TL与各种医学因素和习惯。
与年龄匹配的健康对照组相比，心脏病患者的全端粒和短端粒平均TL较低；然而，由于患者样本有限，差异无统计学意义。心脏病患者短端粒的平均TL随着年龄的增长显著下降。因此，心脏病患者全端粒和短端粒的平均TL也呈现出类似的下降趋势。
在我们的研究中，通过中期Q-FISH观察到，心脏病患者的TL比健康对照组短。然而，需要研究更多病例以阐明TL作为CVD患者诊断潜在生物标志物的用途。
