Abstract
Multiple risk factors of stroke are associated with telomere length shortening. Although leukocyte telomere length (LTL) is shorter in patients with stroke, the heterogeneity is high. Risk factors may be differentially associated with LTL in male and female patients contributing to the heterogeneity. However, the gender difference in associations between LTL and risk factors in stroke patients has not been investigated. In this study, we investigated the gender difference in associations between LTL and risk factors in 312 stroke patients. Real-time quantitative PCR was used to determine relative LTL, and multiple linear regression analysis was applied for association analyses. We found that LTL was negatively associated with triglyceride (TG) in all patients [β(95% CI) = −0.69 (−1.26, −0.11), P < 0.05] after adjusting confounders. Importantly, LTL was negatively associated with lack of exercise [β(95% CI) = −1.80 (−3.12, −0.49), P < 0.05] and LDL levels [β(95% CI) = −3.22 (−6.05, −0.390), P < 0.05] in male patients, while LTL was negatively associated with dyssomnia [β(95%CI) = −2.00 (−3.96, −0.07), P < 0.05] and diabetes [β(95%CI) = −2.13 (−4.10, −0.27), P < 0.01] in female patients. Our study showed that LTL is differently associated with risk factors in male and female patients with stroke, indicating that gender difference should be considered when LTL is potentially applied as an index of risk and prognosis for stroke. Our study also provides an insight into that gender differences should be considered when developing intervention strategies for stroke prevention and treatment.
Highlights
Stroke, an age-related disease, is one of the leading causes of death and long-term disability worldwide, bringing a heavy burden to both family and society (Donnan et al, 2008)
It indicated that gender difference of multiple factors does exist in stroke patients
Our finding clearly showed that gender difference does exist in associations between risk factors and leukocyte telomere length (LTL)
Summary
An age-related disease, is one of the leading causes of death and long-term disability worldwide, bringing a heavy burden to both family and society (Donnan et al, 2008). Leukocyte telomere length (LTL) shortening was associated with the risk of stroke (Kappei and Londoño-Vallejo, 2008; Luo et al, 2017; Gao et al, 2018; Jin et al, 2018; Tian et al, 2019). Stroke-related risk factors such as obesity, smoking, alcohol intake, psychological stress, and depression are linked to telomere length shortening (Tian et al, 2019). Telomere length shortening does not have a causal effect on stroke based on Mendelian randomization studies (Cao et al, 2019, 2020). It suggests that LTL shortening might be the consequence of the pooled effect of risk factors. LTL shortening may serve as an index of stroke risk and potentially serve as an index of prognosis for stroke
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
