Telomere shortening as a stress-related biomarker in children exposed to maternal chronic stress in utero measured 7 years after the Great East Japan Earthquake

Shuko Takahashi; Hiroaki Arima; Masayuki Nakano; Tomoharu Ohki; Jun Morita; Kiyoshi Tabata; Yoshihiro Takayama; Kozo Tanno; Taro Yamamoto

doi:10.1016/j.psychres.2020.113565

Telomere shortening as a stress-related biomarker in children exposed to maternal chronic stress in utero measured 7 years after the Great East Japan Earthquake

Psychiatry Res. 2021 Jan:295:113565. doi: 10.1016/j.psychres.2020.113565. Epub 2020 Nov 11.

Authors

Shuko Takahashi¹, Hiroaki Arima², Masayuki Nakano³, Tomoharu Ohki⁴, Jun Morita⁵, Kiyoshi Tabata⁴, Yoshihiro Takayama⁶, Kozo Tanno⁷, Taro Yamamoto²

Affiliations

¹ Department of International Health and Medical Anthropology, Institute of Tropical Medicine, Nagasaki University, Nagasaki, Japan; Takemi Program in International Health, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA; Department of Health and Welfare, Iwate Prefecture, Morioka, Iwate, Japan. Electronic address: shutakahashi-iwt@umin.ac.jp.
² Department of International Health and Medical Anthropology, Institute of Tropical Medicine, Nagasaki University, Nagasaki, Japan; Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Nagasaki University, Nagasaki, Japan.
³ Department of International Health and Medical Anthropology, Institute of Tropical Medicine, Nagasaki University, Nagasaki, Japan; Department of Bacteriology, Institute of Tropical Medicine, Nagasaki University, Nagasaki, Japan; Department of Nutrition, Faculty of Health Sciences, Kochi Gakuen University, Asahitenjin-cho, Kochi, Japan.
⁴ Iwate Prefectural Takata Hospital, Rikuzentakata, Iwate, Japan.
⁵ Morita Children's Clinic, Morioka, Iwate, Japan.
⁶ Department of International Health and Medical Anthropology, Institute of Tropical Medicine, Nagasaki University, Nagasaki, Japan; Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Nagasaki University, Nagasaki, Japan; Division of Infectious Diseases, Okinawa Prefectural Chubu Hospital, Uruma, Okinawa, Japan.
⁷ Department of Hygiene and Preventive Medicine, School of Medicine, Iwate Medical University, Shiwa-gun, Iwate, Japan.

PMID: 33221021
DOI: 10.1016/j.psychres.2020.113565

Abstract

Seven years after the Great East Japan Earthquake, we investigated telomeres as a potential biomarker of maternal chronic stress in children according to the timing of exposure to the disaster. The subjects were children aged 5-9 years living in Rikuzentakata, Japan. Relative telomere length (rTL) was measured with PCR in saliva samples. The partial regression coefficient of the rTL was significantly shorter in the group of children conceived after the disaster than in the children who were in utero on the day of the disaster. Telomere length should be investigated as a biomarker for assessing disaster-related trauma in future studies.

Keywords: Chronic stress; Natural disaster; Telomere length.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Adult
Biomarkers
Child
Child, Preschool
Earthquakes*
Environmental Exposure / adverse effects*
Female
Humans
Japan
Male
Maternal Exposure / adverse effects*
Middle Aged
Natural Disasters
Polymerase Chain Reaction
Pregnancy
Prenatal Exposure Delayed Effects / genetics*
Saliva / chemistry
Stress, Psychological / genetics*
Stress, Psychological / metabolism
Telomere Shortening / genetics*
Telomere Shortening / radiation effects
Time Factors

Substances

Biomarkers