- Title
- Telomere shortening in elderly individuals with mild cognitive impairment may be attenuated with ω-3 fatty acid supplementation: a randomized controlled pilot study
- Creator
- O'Callaghan, Nathan; Parletta, Natalie; Milte, Catherine M.; Benassi-Evans, Bianca; Fench, Michael; Howe, Peter R.C.
- Relation
- ARC & NHMRC.LP0776922, 320860 & 631947 http://purl.org/au-research/grants/nhmrc/631947
- Relation
- Nutrition Vol. 30, Issue 4, p. 489-491
- Publisher Link
- http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.nut.2013.09.013
- Publisher
- Elsevier
- Resource Type
- journal article
- Date
- 2013
- Description
- Objectives: Excessive shortening of the telomeric ends of chromosomes is a marker of accelerated aging. Oxidative stress and nutritional deficiency may influence this process. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of ω-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid (ω-3 PUFA) supplementation on telomeric shortening in elderly individuals with mild cognitive impairment (MCI). Methods: Thirty-three adults ages > 65 y with MCI were randomized to receive a supplement rich in the long-chain ω-3 PUFAs eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA; 1.67 g EPA + 0.16 g docosahexaenoic acid DHA/d; n = 12) or DHA (1.55 g DHA + 0.40 g EPA/d; n = 12), versus ω-6 PUFA linoleic acid (LA; 2.2 g/d; n = 9) for 6 mo. Results: The intervention did not show an increase in telomere length with treatment and there was a trend toward telomere shortening during the intervention period. Linear mixed modeling produced a robust model although statistically underpowered. Telomere shortening was greatest in the LA group (d = 0.21) than in the DHA (d = 0.12) and EPA groups (d = 0.06). Increased erythrocyte DHA levels were associated with reduced telomere shortening (r = −0.67; P = 0.02) in the DHA group. Conclusion: Telomeric shortening may be attenuated by ω-3 PUFA supplementation, requiring further investigation in larger samples.
- Subject
- telomere length; ω-3 fatty acids; elderly; DHA; EPA; mild cognitive impairment
- Identifier
- http://hdl.handle.net/1959.13/1341777
- Identifier
- uon:28807
- Identifier
- ISSN:0899-9007
- Language
- eng
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