title: Drug addiction is associated with leukocyte telomere length.
abstract: Telomeres are protective chromosomal structures that play a key role in preserving genomic stability. Telomere length is known to be associated with ageing and age-related diseases. To study the impairment of telomeres induced by drug abuse, we conducted an association study in the Chinese Han population. Multivariate linear regression analyses were performed to evaluate the correlation of leukocyte telomere length (LTL) with addiction control status adjusted for age and gender. The results showed that drug abusers exhibited significantly shorter LTLs than controls (P = 1.32e-06). The time before relapse also presented an inverse correlation with LTL (P = 0.02). Drug abusers who had used heroin and diazepam displayed a shorter LTL than those taking other drugs (P = 0.018 and P = 0.009, respectively). Drug abusers who had ingested drugs via snuff exhibited longer LTLs than those using other methods (P = 0.02). These observations may offer a partial explanation for the effects of drug addiction on health.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Biomedical Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai, PR China.
authors.forename: Zhaoyang
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.forename: Junyi
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Ye
authors.forename: Candong
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Daizhan
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Zhou
authors.forename: Qin
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Shen
authors.forename: Ji
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.forename: Lan
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Cao
authors.forename: Ting
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Daxiang
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Cui
authors.forename: Shigang
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: He
authors.forename: Guoyang
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Qi
authors.forename: Lin
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: He
authors.forename: Yun
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Liu
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000701:Analgesics, Opioid / Q000008:administration & dosage; D015331:Cohort Studies; D003975:Diazepam / Q000008:administration & dosage; D005260:Female; D003932:Heroin / Q000008:administration & dosage; D006801:Humans; D006993:Hypnotics and Sedatives / Q000008:administration & dosage; D007962:Leukocytes / Q000378:metabolism*; D016014:Linear Models; D008297:Male; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D019966:Substance-Related Disorders; D016615:Telomere / Q000235:genetics*; D059506:Telomere Shortening / Q000187:drug effects / Q000235:genetics*
chemical_list: D000701:Analgesics, Opioid; D006993:Hypnotics and Sedatives; D003932:Heroin; D003975:Diazepam