Longer leukocyte telomeres are associated with ultra-endurance exercise independent of cardiovascular risk factors.
Telomere length is recognized as a marker of biological age, and shorter mean leukocyte telomere length is associated with increased risk of cardiovascular disease. It is unclear whether repeated exposure to ultra-endurance aerobic exercise is beneficial or detrimental in the long-term and whether it attenuates biological aging. We quantified 67 ultra-marathon runners' and 56 apparently healthy males' leukocyte telomere length (T/S ratio) using real-time quantitative PCR. The ultra-marathon runners had 11% longer telomeres (T/S ratio) than controls (ultra-marathon runners: T/S ratio = 3.5±0.68, controls: T/S ratio = 3.1±0.41; β = 0.40, SE = 0.10, P = 1.4×10(-4)) in age-adjusted analysis. The difference remained statistically significant after adjustment for cardiovascular risk factors (P = 2.2×10(-4)). The magnitude of this association translates into 16.2±0.26 years difference in biological age and approximately 324-648bp difference in leukocyte telomere length between ultra-marathon runners and healthy controls. Neither traditional cardiovascular risk factors nor markers of inflammation/adhesion molecules explained the difference in leukocyte telomere length between ultra-marathon runners and controls. Taken together these data suggest that regular engagement in ultra-endurance aerobic exercise attenuates cellular aging.
School of Health Sciences, University of Ballarat, Mt Helen, Australia.
Joshua
J
Denham
Christopher P
CP
Nelson
Brendan J
BJ
O'Brien
Scott A
SA
Nankervis
Matthew
M
Denniff
Jack T
JT
Harvey
Francine Z
FZ
Marques
Veryan
V
Codd
Ewa
E
Zukowska-Szczechowska
Nilesh J
NJ
Samani
Maciej
M
Tomaszewski
Fadi J
FJ
Charchar
D000328:Adult; D000375:Aging / Q000235:genetics; D001794:Blood Pressure / Q000502:physiology; D015992:Body Mass Index; D002097:C-Reactive Protein / Q000378:metabolism; D002318:Cardiovascular Diseases / Q000097:blood / Q000235:genetics / Q000503:physiopathology; D002784:Cholesterol / Q000097:blood; D008076:Cholesterol, HDL / Q000097:blood; D019040:E-Selectin / Q000097:blood; D015444:Exercise; D006801:Humans; D018799:Intercellular Adhesion Molecule-1 / Q000097:blood; D015850:Interleukin-6 / Q000097:blood; D020738:Leptin / Q000097:blood; D007962:Leukocytes / Q000378:metabolism*; D016014:Linear Models; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D060888:Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction; D012307:Risk Factors; D012420:Running; D016615:Telomere / Q000235:genetics*; D014280:Triglycerides / Q000097:blood
D008076:Cholesterol, HDL; D019040:E-Selectin; D015850:Interleukin-6; D020738:Leptin; D014280:Triglycerides; D018799:Intercellular Adhesion Molecule-1; D002097:C-Reactive Protein; D002784:Cholesterol