Abstract
ObjectiveHaving experienced 2–3 births is associated with reduced mortality versus women with <2 or ≥4 births. The effect of 2–3 births on lifespan may be associated with delayed cellular aging. We hypothesized telomere length, a marker of cellular aging, would be longer in women who had 2–3 pregnancies.MethodsLeukocyte telomere length was measured using quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction in 620 women in CARDIA at the year 15 and 20 exams, expressed as the ratio of telomere repeat copy number to single-copy gene copy number (T/S). Number of pregnancies at the time of telomere length measurement was obtained (mean age = 41±0.1 years, average gravidity = 2.64±0.1 pregnancies). Participants were divided into 4 groups by number of pregnancies: 0, 1, 2–3, and ≥4, to test for differences in telomere length by gravidity group.ResultsThe mean and SD for telomere length was 0.98 ± 0.20 T/S in the whole cohort. There were no differences in mean telomere length between groups; 0.98±0.02 T/S in women with 0 pregnancies, 1.01±0.02 T/S in women with 1 pregnancy, 0.97±0.01 T/S in women with 2–3 pregnancies, and 0.99±0.02 T/S in women with ≥4 pregnancies (p = 0.51). We defined high-risk (shorter) telomere length as ≤25th percentile, and low-risk (longer) telomere length as ≥75 percentile. There were no differences in the prevalence of high-risk or low-risk telomere length between gravidity groups.ConclusionsGravidity was not associated with telomere length in early middle age; the protective association of 2–3 births may act through other mechanisms.
Highlights
Pregnancy has lasting effects on vascular function, such as reducing arterial stiffness and mean arterial pressure [1]
There were no differences in mean telomere length between groups; 0.98±0.02 to single-copy gene copy number (T/S) in women with 0 pregnancies, 1.01±0.02 T/S in women with 1 pregnancy, 0.97±0.01 T/S in women with 2–3 pregnancies, and 0.99±0.02 T/S in women with !4 pregnancies (p = 0.51)
There were no differences in the prevalence of high-risk or low-risk telomere length between gravidity groups
Summary
Pregnancy has lasting effects on vascular function, such as reducing arterial stiffness and mean arterial pressure [1]. Women who have had 2–3 births have less evidence of subclinical atherosclerosis (reduced carotid intima-media thickness; cIMT, coronary artery calcium; CAC, and increased carotid distensibility) compared with women who have had less than 2 or 4 or more births years later [3,4,5]. Taken together, these data suggest that experiencing 2–3 pregnancies may reduce cardiovascular risk during aging in women. The protective effect of 2–3 pregnancies on overall and cardiovascular mortality may be due to reduced cellular aging, evident by longer telomere length, in women who have had 2–3 pregnancies
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