Maternal psychosocial stress during pregnancy is associated with newborn leukocyte telomere length.

ABSTRACT:

Objective

In adults, one of the major determinants of leukocyte telomere length (LTL), a predictor of age-related diseases and mortality, is cumulative psychosocial stress exposure. More recently we reported that exposure to maternal psychosocial stress during intrauterine life is associated with LTL in young adulthood. The objective of the present study was to determine how early in life this effect of stress on LTL is apparent by quantifying the association of maternal psychosocial stress during pregnancy with newborn telomere length.

Study design

In a prospective study of N = 27 mother-newborn dyads maternal pregnancy-specific stress was assessed in early gestation and cord blood peripheral blood mononuclear cells were subsequently collected and analyzed for LTL measureme

SUBMITTER: Entringer S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3612534 | biostudies-literature | 2013 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature