TY - JOUR
T1 - The Association between Early-life Relative Telomere Length and Childhood Neurodevelopment
AU - Oktapodas Feiler, Marina
AU - Patel, Deven
AU - Li, Huiqi
AU - Meacham, Philip J
AU - Watson, Gene E
AU - Shamlaye, Conrad F
AU - Yeates, Alison J.
AU - Broberg, Karin
AU - van Wijngaarden, Edwin
PY - 2018/3/31
Y1 - 2018/3/31
N2 - Purpose: To examine the association between telomere length and neurodevelopment in children. Methods: We examined the relationship between relative telomere length (rTL) and neurodevelopmental outcomes at 9 and 30 months, and 5 years of age in children enrolled in the Seychelles Child Development Study Nutrition Cohort 1 (NC1). Relative telomere length was measured in cord blood and in child blood at age five. Multivariable linear regression examined associations between neurodevelopmental outcomes and rTL adjusting for relevant covariates.Results: Mean rTL was 1.18 at birth and 0.71 at age five. Increased cord blood rTL was associated with better scores on two neurodevelopmental tests, the psychomotor developmental index (β =4.01; 95% confidence interval (CI)=0.17, 7.85) at age 30 months, and the Woodcock Johnson test of achievement letter-word score (β=2.88; CI=1.21-4.56) at age five. The Woodcock Johnson test of achievement letter-word score remained statistically significant after two outliers were excluded (β=2.83; CI=0.69, 4.97); the psychomotor developmental index did not (β =3.62; CI=-1.28, 8.52). None of the neurodevelopmental outcomes at age five were associated with five-year rTL. Conclusion: Although increased cord blood rTL was associated with better test scores for a few neurodevelopmental outcomes, this study found little consistent evidence of an association between rTL and neurodevelopment. Future studies with a larger sample size, longer follow-up, and other relevant biological markers (e.g. oxidative stress) are needed to clarify the role of rTL in neurodevelopment and its relevance as a potential surrogate measure for oxidative stress in the field of developmental neurotoxicity.
AB - Purpose: To examine the association between telomere length and neurodevelopment in children. Methods: We examined the relationship between relative telomere length (rTL) and neurodevelopmental outcomes at 9 and 30 months, and 5 years of age in children enrolled in the Seychelles Child Development Study Nutrition Cohort 1 (NC1). Relative telomere length was measured in cord blood and in child blood at age five. Multivariable linear regression examined associations between neurodevelopmental outcomes and rTL adjusting for relevant covariates.Results: Mean rTL was 1.18 at birth and 0.71 at age five. Increased cord blood rTL was associated with better scores on two neurodevelopmental tests, the psychomotor developmental index (β =4.01; 95% confidence interval (CI)=0.17, 7.85) at age 30 months, and the Woodcock Johnson test of achievement letter-word score (β=2.88; CI=1.21-4.56) at age five. The Woodcock Johnson test of achievement letter-word score remained statistically significant after two outliers were excluded (β=2.83; CI=0.69, 4.97); the psychomotor developmental index did not (β =3.62; CI=-1.28, 8.52). None of the neurodevelopmental outcomes at age five were associated with five-year rTL. Conclusion: Although increased cord blood rTL was associated with better test scores for a few neurodevelopmental outcomes, this study found little consistent evidence of an association between rTL and neurodevelopment. Future studies with a larger sample size, longer follow-up, and other relevant biological markers (e.g. oxidative stress) are needed to clarify the role of rTL in neurodevelopment and its relevance as a potential surrogate measure for oxidative stress in the field of developmental neurotoxicity.
KW - children
KW - epidemiology
KW - cognition
KW - language
UR - https://pure.ulster.ac.uk/en/publications/the-association-between-early-life-relative-telomere-length-and-c
UR - https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0161813X1830024X
U2 - 10.1016/j.neuro.2018.01.005
DO - 10.1016/j.neuro.2018.01.005
M3 - Article
C2 - 29360532
VL - 65
SP - 22
EP - 27
JO - Neurotoxicology
JF - Neurotoxicology
ER -