title: Telomere attrition in beta and alpha cells with age.
abstract: We have reported telomere attrition in β and α cells of the pancreas in elderly patients with type 2 diabetes, but it has not been explored how the telomere lengths of these islet cells change according to age in normal subjects. To examine the telomere lengths of β and α cells in individuals without diabetes across a wide range of ages, we conducted measurement of the telomere lengths of human pancreatic β and α cells obtained from 104 autopsied subjects without diabetes ranging in age from 0 to 100 years. As an index of telomere lengths, the normalized telomere-centromere ratio (NTCR) was determined for β (NTCRβ) and α (NTCRα) cells by quantitative fluorescence in situ hybridization (Q-FISH). We found NTCRβ and NTCRα showed almost the same levels and both decreased according to age (p < 0.001 for both). NTCRs decreased more rapidly with age and were more widely distributed (p = 0.036 for NTCRβ, p < 0.001 for NTCRα) in subjects under 18 years of age than in subjects over 18 years. There was a positive correlation between NTCRβ and NTCRα only among adult subjects (p < 0.001). In conclusion, the telomeres of β and α cells become shortened with normal aging process.
authors.affiliation: Department of Diabetes, Metabolism, and Endocrinology, Tokyo Metropolitan Geriatric Hospital, Tokyo, Japan. tamurayo@tmghig.jp.
authors.forename: Yoshiaki
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Tamura
authors.affiliation: Research Team for Geriatric Pathology, Tokyo Metropolitan Geriatric Hospital and Institute of Gerontology, 35-2 Sakae-cho, Itabashi-ku, 173-0015, Tokyo, 173-0015, Japan.
authors.forename: Naotaka
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Izumiyama-Shimomura
authors.affiliation: Department of Diabetes, Metabolism, and Endocrinology, Tokyo Metropolitan Geriatric Hospital, Tokyo, Japan.
authors.forename: Yoshiyuki
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Kimbara
authors.affiliation: Research Team for Geriatric Pathology, Tokyo Metropolitan Geriatric Hospital and Institute of Gerontology, 35-2 Sakae-cho, Itabashi-ku, 173-0015, Tokyo, 173-0015, Japan.
authors.forename: Ken-Ichi
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Nakamura
authors.affiliation: Research Team for Geriatric Pathology, Tokyo Metropolitan Geriatric Hospital and Institute of Gerontology, 35-2 Sakae-cho, Itabashi-ku, 173-0015, Tokyo, 173-0015, Japan. naoshi@tmig.or.jp.|Department of Pathology, Tokyo Metropolitan Geriatric Hospital, Tokyo, Japan. naoshi@tmig.or.jp.
authors.forename: Naoshi
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Ishikawa
authors.affiliation: Research Team for Geriatric Pathology, Tokyo Metropolitan Geriatric Hospital and Institute of Gerontology, 35-2 Sakae-cho, Itabashi-ku, 173-0015, Tokyo, 173-0015, Japan.|Department of Pathology, Tokyo Metropolitan Geriatric Hospital, Tokyo, Japan.
authors.forename: Junko
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Aida
authors.affiliation: Department of Diabetes, Metabolism, and Endocrinology, Tokyo Metropolitan Geriatric Hospital, Tokyo, Japan.
authors.forename: Yuko
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Chiba
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology, Tokyo Metropolitan Geriatric Hospital, Tokyo, Japan.
authors.forename: Yoko
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Matsuda
authors.affiliation: Department of Diabetes, Metabolism, and Endocrinology, Tokyo Metropolitan Geriatric Hospital, Tokyo, Japan.
authors.forename: Seijiro
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Mori
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology, Tokyo Metropolitan Geriatric Hospital, Tokyo, Japan.
authors.forename: Tomio
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Arai
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology, Japanese Red Cross Medical Center, Tokyo, Japan.
authors.forename: Mutsunori
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Fujiwara
authors.affiliation: Research Team for Geriatric Pathology, Tokyo Metropolitan Geriatric Hospital and Institute of Gerontology, 35-2 Sakae-cho, Itabashi-ku, 173-0015, Tokyo, 173-0015, Japan.|Department of Pathology, Tokyo Metropolitan Geriatric Hospital, Tokyo, Japan.
authors.forename: Steven S S
authors.initials: SS
authors.lastname: Poon
authors.affiliation: Human Care Research Team, Tokyo Metropolitan Geriatric Hospital and Institute of Gerontology, Tokyo, Japan.
authors.forename: Tatsuro
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Ishizaki
authors.affiliation: Department of Diabetes, Metabolism, and Endocrinology, Tokyo Metropolitan Geriatric Hospital, Tokyo, Japan.
authors.forename: Atsushi
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Araki
authors.affiliation: Research Team for Geriatric Pathology, Tokyo Metropolitan Geriatric Hospital and Institute of Gerontology, 35-2 Sakae-cho, Itabashi-ku, 173-0015, Tokyo, 173-0015, Japan.|Department of Pathology, Tokyo Metropolitan Geriatric Hospital, Tokyo, Japan.
authors.forename: Kaiyo
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Takubo
authors.affiliation: Department of Diabetes, Metabolism, and Endocrinology, Tokyo Metropolitan Geriatric Hospital, Tokyo, Japan.
authors.forename: Hideki
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Ito
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000375:Aging / Q000235:genetics*; D003924:Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D050416:Glucagon-Secreting Cells / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology; D006801:Humans; D017404:In Situ Hybridization, Fluorescence; D050417:Insulin-Secreting Cells / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D016615:Telomere / Q000235:genetics*
keywords: Aging; Alpha cell; Beta cell; Quantitative fluorescence in situ hybridization (Q-FISH); Telomere