TELOMERE LENGTH AND LIFE COURSE: RELATIONS WITH PHYSICAL FUNCTION, INFLAMMATORY MARKERS AND HEALTH CONDITIONS IN COMMUNITY ELDERS
telomere, aging, lifecourse; gait speed
Introduction: telomere length (TL) has been suggested as a possible cellular aging biomarker, and studies have shown its association with lifecourse adversities, cardiovascular disease, cancer, stroke, obesity, depression and poorer performance in physical function tests. The accelerated TL shortening may be a response to the stress of life, though it is unknown the relationship between TL and childhood adversities, chronic conditions, health behaviors, and physical function in elderly living in Northeast Brazil. Objectives: To explore evidence on associations between chronic stress in lifecourse and TL length through systematic review; To analyze associations between TL length and childhood adversities, chronic conditions, health behaviors, inflammatory markers (interleukin-6 and c-reactive protein) and physical function, as well as to explore the influence of socioeconomic status in older women with different levels of education in a city of Northeast Brazil. Methods: observational study with transversal character. It was evaluated 106 community women with aged 64 to 74 years. The relative leukocyte TL length was measured by qPCR in 83 women. Data were collected from May 2014 to March 2015. A questionnaire included sociodemographic information, on adversities and physical function. It was also collected clinical and biochemical variables. Data analysis will be performed using the software SPSS 20.0 (Statistical Package for the Social Science) with the significance level of 5%. To examine the normality of the data will be used the Kolmogorov-Smirnov test, and the corresponding statistical tests will be performed. In parallel to this study, it was developed a systematic review following a protocol published in 2014, and the results reported according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses.