Emerging evidence suggests that epigenetics regulates telomere dynamics in adults. However, the relationship between these pathways in children and youth remains unknown. Thus, we examined this association in 542 healthy adolescents aged 14 to 18 years old (44.8% African Americans; 55.2% females). Global DNA methylation level (%5-mC) was quantified using ELISA method. Leukocyte telomere length (LTL) was defined as relative telomere to single copy gene (T/S) ratio. Multiple linear regression models, adjusted for age, gender, ethnicity, Tanner stage, BMI, PA, and batch effect, revealed that %5 mC was associated with LTL (adjusted β = 0.17, p < 0.01). %5 mC accounted for 5.0% of the variation for LTL. A significant gender interaction was identified (p < 0.01). There was an association between %5 mC and LTL in females (all ps < 0.01), but not in males. Further sensitivity analyses by race revealed similar associations in African Americans and whites (all ps < 0.03). The present study, for the first time, shows that lower levels of global DNA methylation are associated with shorter telomere lengths in youth, which may decrease genome stability and augment the susceptibility to diseases. Longitudinal studies are warranted to establish the effects of global DNA methylation on LTL maintenance over time.

中文翻译：

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健康青少年中全球DNA甲基化与端粒长度之间的关联。

新兴证据表明，表观遗传学可调节成年人的端粒动力学。然而，这些途径在儿童和青少年之间的关系仍然未知。因此，我们在542位年龄在14至18岁之间的健康青少年（44.8％的非洲裔美国人； 55.2％的女性）中检查了这种关联。使用ELISA方法对总DNA甲基化水平（％5-mC）进行定量。白细胞端粒长度（LTL）定义为端粒与单拷贝基因的相对比率（T / S）。根据年龄，性别，种族，Tanner阶段，BMI，PA和批次效应进行调整的多个线性回归模型显示，％5 mC与LTL相关（调整后的β= 0.17，p <0.01）。％5 mC占LTL变化的5.0％。确认了显着的性别互动（p <0.01）。女性的％5 mC与LTL之间存在关联（所有ps <0.01），但男性则不然。进一步的种族敏感性分析显示，非洲裔美国人和白人之间存在相似的关联（所有ps <0.03）。本研究首次表明，较低的总体DNA甲基化水平与青年时期的端粒较短有关，这可能会降低基因组稳定性并增加对疾病的易感性。必须进行纵向研究才能确定总体DNA甲基化对LTL维持的影响。