Friday 12th January 2007
British scientists report that tiny strands of DNA called telomeres located at the ends of chromosomes may hold clues to the possibility of a person suffering from coronary heart disease. Telomeres are also believed to contain secrets about aging.
The researchers measured telomere length in more than 1,500 men between the ages of 45 and 64 years as part of their study. They used white blood cells or leukocytes for measuring telomere length. They found men with shorter telomeres had higher risk of developing heart disease.
The researchers compared the length of 484 men who developed heart disease with those of the remaining 1,058 healthy men in the study. They discovered that men with heart disease had shorter telomeres.
??We have shown that leukocyte telomere length is associated with future coronary heart disease events in middle-aged, high-risk men,? Professor Nilesh Samani, of the University of Leicester in England, and associates reported in The Lancet medical journal.
Telomeres are the protective shields of chromosomes; they stop chromosome ends from fraying. These telomeres shorten every time a cell divides. As we age, telomeres tend to grow shorter and shorter. And as the telomeres become shorter in length, the chances of chromosomes becoming unstable and the risk of mutation increase.
Earlier research had already found that people who have heart disease also have shorter telomeres. However it had not yet been confirmed if the illness could be predicted by measuring telomere length.
??They have shown that it is a predictor. It doesn??t say it is functionally linked to heart disease but it is certainly associated with it,? Professor Jeremy Pearson, of the British Heart Foundation, said. In his opinion the findings are highly important as they can help understand the disease process as also find methods to prevent heart attacks.
Heart disease is one of the leading causes of deaths in developed and developing countries. Development of the disease has been associated with smoking, being overweight or obese, lack of exercise, high blood pressure, diabetes, and high cholesterol levels.
According to the researchers, telomere length could do more than just pinpoint which men might develop heart disease. They believe it could also help identify which men would benefit from taking cholesterol-lowering statin drugs in order to reduce their risk of heart disease.
Through their study, the researchers revealed men with short telomeres would face lower risk of developing heart disease if they were started on statin therapy. On the other hand, patients with short telomeres who were put on a placebo faced double the odds of developing heart problems as compared to people with long telomeres.
