Telomere Length and Coronary Atherosclerosis in Rheumatoid Arthritis.

ABSTRACT:

Objective

Telomeres protect against chromosomal end damage and shorten with each cell division; their length may be a marker of cardiovascular and overall biological aging. We examined the hypothesis that reduced telomere length is associated with increased coronary atherosclerosis in rheumatoid arthritis (RA).

Methods

We performed a cross-sectional study in 145 patients with RA and 87 control subjects frequency-matched for age, race, and sex. Coronary artery calcium score was determined by noncontrast cardiac computed tomography. Telomere length was measured from whole blood DNA, using real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction and expressed as telomeric product to a single-copy gene product ratio (T/S ratio). Associations between telomere length, coronary artery calc

SUBMITTER: Ormseth MJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4970932 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature