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Telomere length, endothelial activation and carotid atherosclerosis in black and white African patients with rheumatoid arthritis

1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9

 

  1. Cardiovascular Pathophysiology and Genomics Research Unit, School of Physiology, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa.
  2. Cardiovascular Pathophysiology and Genomics Research Unit, School of Physiology, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa.
  3. Cardiovascular Pathophysiology and Genomics Research Unit, School of Physiology, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa.
  4. Cardiovascular Pathophysiology and Genomics Research Unit, School of Physiology, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa.
  5. Department of Rheumatology, Charlotte Maxeke Johannesburg Academic Hospital, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa.
  6. Cardiovascular Pathophysiology and Genomics Research Unit, School of Physiology, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa.
  7. Cardiovascular Pathophysiology and Genomics Research Unit, School of Physiology, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa.
  8. Cardiovascular Pathophysiology and Genomics Research Unit, School of Physiology, Faculty of Health Sciences, Univ.of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa; and Rheumatology Division, Universitair Ziekenhuis & Vrije Universiteit, Brussels, Belgium.
  9. Cardiovascular Pathophysiol. & Genomics Res. Unit, Univ.of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa; & Epidemiol., Genetics & Atherosclerosis Res., Systemic Inflammatory Dis, Rheumatol.Div., Hosp.Univ. Marques de Valdecilla, IDIVAL, Santander, Spain.

CER8970
2016 Vol.34, N°5
PI 0864, PF 0871
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PMID: 27157144 [PubMed]

Received: 13/09/2015
Accepted : 15/02/2016
In Press: 28/04/2016
Published: 16/09/2016

Abstract

OBJECTIVES:
Our objective was to examine associations of traditional and non-traditional cardiovascular risk factors with relative leukocyte telomere length and confounder adjusted relationships of relative telomere length with endothelial activation and carotid atherosclerosis in black and white African patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA).
METHODS:
Relative telomere length of leukocyte DNA in whole blood was determined using quantitative RT-PCR in 205 (101 black) African patients with RA.
RESULTS:
In demographic characteristic adjusted analysis, relative telomere length tended to be larger in black compared to white patients (median (IQR)=0.54 (0.42-0.54) and 0.48 (0.37-0.60) (p=0.07), respectively). In black patients, waist circumference, systolic, diastolic and mean blood pressure were associated with relative telomere length (β (SE)=-0.00270 (0.00114) (p=0.02), -0.00185 (0.00060) (p=0.003), -0.00243 (0.00112) (p=0.03) and -0.00225 (0.00075) (p=0.003), respectively); in white patients, age, anti-cyclic citrullinated antibody positivity, biologic agent use, a cholesterol-HDL cholesterol ratio of >4 and the number of major traditional risk factors were related to relative telomere length (β (SE) =-0.00242 (0.00113) (p=0.03), 0.06629 (0.03374) (p=0.05), -0.09321 (0.04310) (p=0.03), 0.08225 (0.03420) (p=0.02) and 0.04046 (0.01719) (p=0.02), respectively). One SD increase in relative telomere length was associated with carotid plaque (OR (95% CI)=1.65 (0.99-2.75) (p=0.05)) and vascular cell adhesion molecule-1 concentrations (β (SE)=-0.05031 (0.02480) (p=0.04)) in black and white patients, respectively.
CONCLUSIONS:
This study disclosed paradoxically direct relationships between relative telomere length and cardiovascular risk factors in white and atherosclerosis in black African RA patients. The role of relative telomere length in cardiovascular risk and its stratification in RA requires longitudinal investigation.

Rheumatology Article