Genetically predicted telomere length and Alzheimer's disease endophenotypes: a Mendelian randomization study

Telomere length (TL) is associated with biological aging, consequently influencing the risk of age-related diseases such as Alzheimer's disease (AD). We aimed to evaluate the potential causal role of TL in AD endophenotypes (i.e., cognitive performance, N = 2233; brain age and AD-related si...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores: Rodríguez-Fernández, Blanca, Vilor Tejedor, Natàlia, 1988-, Arenaza Urquijo, Eider M., Sánchez Benavides, Gonzalo, Suárez-Calvet, Marc, Operto, Grégory, Minguillón, Carolina, Navarro, Arcadi, Gispert, Juan Domingo, Sala Vila, Aleix, ALFA Study
Tipo de recurso: artículo
Estado:Versión publicada
Fecha de publicación:2022
País:España
Institución:Varias* (Consorci de Biblioteques Universitáries de Catalunya, Centre de Serveis Científics i Acadèmics de Catalunya)
Repositorio:Recercat. Dipósit de la Recerca de Catalunya
OAI Identifier:oai:recercat.cat:10230/55143
Acceso en línea:http://hdl.handle.net/10230/55143
http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s13195-022-01101-9
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palabra clave:Alzheimer’s disease
Cerebrospinal fluid biomarkers
Mendelian randomization
Neuroimaging
Polygenic risk score
Telomere length
Descripción
Sumario:Telomere length (TL) is associated with biological aging, consequently influencing the risk of age-related diseases such as Alzheimer's disease (AD). We aimed to evaluate the potential causal role of TL in AD endophenotypes (i.e., cognitive performance, N = 2233; brain age and AD-related signatures, N = 1134; and cerebrospinal fluid biomarkers (CSF) of AD and neurodegeneration, N = 304) through a Mendelian randomization (MR) analysis. Our analysis was conducted in the context of the ALFA (ALzheimer and FAmilies) study, a population of cognitively healthy individuals at risk of AD. A total of 20 single nucleotide polymorphisms associated with TL were used to determine the effect of TL on AD endophenotypes. Analyses were adjusted by age, sex, and years of education. Stratified analyses by APOE-ɛ4 status and polygenic risk score of AD were conducted. MR analysis revealed significant associations between genetically predicted longer TL and lower levels of CSF Aβ and higher levels of CSF NfL only in APOE-ɛ4 non-carriers. Moreover, inheriting longer TL was associated with greater cortical thickness in age and AD-related brain signatures and lower levels of CSF p-tau among individuals at a high genetic predisposition to AD. Further observational analyses are warranted to better understand these associations.