title: Leukocyte telomere length is related to appendicular lean mass: cross-sectional data from the Berlin Aging Study II (BASE-II).
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Age-related progressive loss of muscle mass is an increasing problem in our aging society, affecting physical ability, risk of falls, and need for health care. Telomere length has been recognized as a marker of biological age on the population level. The relation between muscle mass in advanced age and telomere length, however, has rarely been examined.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  We evaluated the relation between appendicular lean mass (ALM) and relative leukocyte telomere length (rLTL) in 1398 participants of the Berlin Aging Study II (mean ± SD age: 68.2 ± 3.7 y; 49.6% men).
  
  
  METHODS
  rLTL was determined by real-time polymerase chain reaction. Lean mass was estimated by dual X-ray absorptiometry and examined as leg lean mass (LLM), ALM, and the ratio of ALM to body mass index (ALMBMI).
  
  
  RESULTS
  Weak, but highly significant (P < 0.001), correlations of rLTL with ALM (r = 0.248), ALMBMI (r = 0.254), and LLM (r = 0.263) were found. In the fully adjusted model that included age, BMI, low-grade inflammation, lifestyle factors, and morbidities as potential confounders, rLTL was associated with ALM (β = 1.11, SEM = 0.46, P = 0.017), LLM (β = 1.20, SEM = 0.36, P = 0.001), and ALMBMI (β = 0.04, SEM = 0.02, P = 0.013) in men and with LLM in women (β = 0.78, SEM = 0.35, P = 0.026).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our results suggest that short telomeres may be a risk factor for lower ALM, particularly for low LLM. To confirm the association between telomere attrition and loss of LLM and ALMBMI, which are highly relevant for physical ability, further research in a longitudinal context is needed. The medical portion of this trial was registered in the German Clinical Trials Registry (http://drks-neu.uniklinik-freiburg.de/drks_web/navigate.do?navigationId=start) as DRKS00009277.
authors.affiliation: Charité Research Group on Geriatrics and.
authors.forename: Antje
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0003-1675-4512
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Meyer
authors.affiliation: Charité Research Group on Geriatrics and Institute of Medical and Human Genetics, Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Berlin, Germany.
authors.forename: Bastian
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Salewsky
authors.affiliation: Charité Research Group on Geriatrics and.
authors.forename: Dominik
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Spira
authors.affiliation: Charité Research Group on Geriatrics and.
authors.forename: Elisabeth
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Steinhagen-Thiessen
authors.affiliation: Charité Research Group on Geriatrics and.
authors.forename: Kristina
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0003-2029-9102
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Norman
authors.affiliation: Charité Research Group on Geriatrics and ilja.demuth@charite.de.
authors.forename: Ilja
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Demuth
mesh_terms: D015502:Absorptiometry, Photon; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000375:Aging / Q000502:physiology*; D001604:Berlin; D015992:Body Mass Index; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007866:Leg; D007962:Leukocytes; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D018482:Muscle, Skeletal / Q000473:pathology*; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D012307:Risk Factors; D055948:Sarcopenia / Q000209:etiology*; D016615:Telomere / Q000502:physiology*; D059506:Telomere Shortening; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: BASE-II; appendicular lean mass; leukocytes; muscle mass; sarcopenia; telomere length