2012年8月13日 讯 /生物谷BIOON/ --焦虑症和过早衰老相关吗?近日来自布莱根妇女医院(BWH)的研究者揭示了,常见形式的焦虑症比如我们常见的恐惧性焦虑,在中年和老年妇女中,这种焦虑症和端粒的缩短有关。这项研究揭示了恐惧性焦虑或许是加速衰老的风险因子。
相关研究成果刊登在了近日的国际杂志PLoS One上。
端粒(Telomeres)是染色体末端的DNA蛋白质复合物,其可以保护染色体免受变质,而且端粒也是细胞分裂期间染色体末端保护遗传信息的守卫者;然而端粒也是生物学和细胞衰老的标志物,缩短端粒的长度和癌症风险增加、心脏疾病等病症直接相关。
在这项大型横向研究中,研究者从5243名年龄在42-69岁的妇女身上获取了其血液样品,对样品进行分析,研究者分析了其端粒的长度,于此同时,参与者也填写了关于其恐怖焦虑的调查表。分析结果表明,高水平的恐怖性焦虑和明显的端粒长度缩短相关,而且恐怖性焦虑妇女的端粒长度和正常组差异比较明显。
研究者Olivia表示,很多人想知道压力是否、如何使其老化加剧,值得注意的是,这项研究也解释了心理学压力的常见形式(恐怖性焦虑)和过早衰老之间的关系。然而这项研究设计不能够证明其原因和效果或者说是什么问题先发生,是焦虑先发生还是端粒缩短先发生,却不得而知。
总之,这项研究为后期研究端粒缩短相关的焦虑铺平了道路,并且提供了一些研究基础。(生物谷Bioon.com)
编译自:Anxiety linked to shortened telomeres, accelerated aging
doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0040516
PMC:
PMID:
High Phobic Anxiety Is Related to Lower Leukocyte Telomere Length in Women
Olivia I. Okereke1,2,5*, Jennifer Prescott1,2,3, Jason Y. Y. Wong1,2,3, Jiali Han1,2,3,4, Kathryn M. Rexrode6, Immaculata De Vivo1,2,3
Background Chronic psychological distress has been linked to shorter telomeres, an indication of accelerated aging. Yet, little is known about relations of anxiety to telomeres. We examined whether a typically chronic form of anxiety – phobic anxiety – is related to telomere length. Methodology/Principal Findings Relative telomere lengths (RTLs) in peripheral blood leukocytes were measured by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction among 5,243 women (aged 42–69 years) who: were participants in the Nurses' Health Study; were controls in prior case-control studies of telomeres and disease, or randomly selected healthy participants in a cognitive function sub-study; had completed the Crown-Crisp phobic index proximal to blood collection. Adjusted least-squares mean RTLs (z-scores) were calculated across phobic categories. Higher phobic anxiety was generally associated with lower RTLs (age-adjusted p-trend = 0.09); this association was similar after adjustment for confounders – paternal age-at-birth, smoking, body mass index (BMI) and physical activity (p-trend = 0.15). Notably, a threshold was identified. Among women with Crown-Crisp<6 points, the multivariable-adjusted least-squares mean RTL z-score = 0.02 standard units; however, among the most phobic women (Crown-Crisp≥6), the multivariable-adjusted least-squares mean RTL z-score = −0.09 standard units (mean difference = −0.10 standard units; p = 0.02). The magnitude of this difference was comparable to that for women 6 years apart in age. Finally, effect modification by BMI, smoking and paternal age was observed: associations were stronger among highly phobic women with BMI≥25 kg/m2, without smoking history, or born to fathers aged ≥40 years. Conclusions/Significance In this large, cross-sectional study high phobic anxiety was associated with shorter telomeres. These results point toward prospective investigations relating anxiety to telomere length change.