Telomeres are shorter and associated with number of suicide attempts in affective disorders.
J Affect Disord
; 295: 1032-1039, 2021 12 01.
Article
in En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-34706411
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND:
Shorter telomere length is a putative biomarker of accelerated aging and has been associated with affective disorders and mortality. Psychological factors and behaviors associated with telomere shortening are yet to be clarified. Here, we investigate the association between history of suicide attempts and telomere length in patients with affective disorders.METHODS:
Leucocyte telomere length was determined by quantitative real-time Polymerase Chain Reaction (qPCR) in patients with affective disorders (n = 248) including bipolar disorders type I (n = 159), type II (n = 67), major depressive disorder (n = 22), and healthy controls (n = 401). Diagnosis, duration of illness, and age at onset were assessed using the Structural Clinical Interview for DSM-IV (SCID-I). Number of lifetime suicide attempts were based on self-reports. Effect size was calculated using Cohen's d.RESULTS:
Telomere length was reduced in patients with affective disorders relative to healthy controls (d = 0.18, F = 5.26, p = 0.02). Among patients, a higher number of suicide attempts was associated with shorter telomere length (ß = -0.24, t = -3.83, CI = -0.44 to -0.14, p < 0.001), also when controlling for duration of illness and age at onset (ß = -.23, CI = -.42 to -.12, p = 0.001). Multiple suicide attempts were associated with telomere length reduction comparable to eight years lifespan, adjusted for demographic and clinical characteristics.CONCLUSIONS:
While longitudinal data are needed to clarify the temporal course, previous suicide attempts and related distress may accelerate telomere shortening and aging in patients with affective disorders.Key words
Full text:
1
Collection:
01-internacional
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
Telomere
/
Depressive Disorder, Major
Type of study:
Risk_factors_studies
Limits:
Humans
Language:
En
Journal:
J Affect Disord
Year:
2021
Document type:
Article
Affiliation country:
Norway
Publication country:
HOLANDA
/
HOLLAND
/
NETHERLANDS
/
NL
/
PAISES BAJOS
/
THE NETHERLANDS