Wang, Q;
Codd, V;
Raisi-Estabragh, Z;
Musicha, C;
Bountziouka, V;
Kaptoge, S;
Allara, E;
... Nelson, CP; + view all
(2021)
Shorter leukocyte telomere length is associated with adverse COVID-19 outcomes: A cohort study in UK Biobank.
EBioMedicine
, 70
, Article 103485. 10.1016/j.ebiom.2021.103485.
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Abstract
Background Older age is the most powerful risk factor for adverse coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19) outcomes. It is uncertain whether leucocyte telomere length (LTL), previously proposed as a marker of biological age, is also associated with COVID-19 outcomes. Methods We associated LTL values obtained from participants recruited into UK Biobank (UKB) during 2006–2010 with adverse COVID-19 outcomes recorded by 30 November 2020, defined as a composite of any of the following: hospital admission, need for critical care, respiratory support, or mortality. Using information on 130 LTL-associated genetic variants, we conducted exploratory Mendelian randomisation (MR) analyses in UKB to evaluate whether observational associations might reflect cause-and-effect relationships. Findings Of 6775 participants in UKB who tested positive for infection with SARS-CoV-2 in the community, there were 914 (13.5%) with adverse COVID-19 outcomes. The odds ratio (OR) for adverse COVID-19 outcomes was 1·17 (95% CI 1·05–1·30; P = 0·004) per 1-SD shorter usual LTL, after adjustment for age, sex and ethnicity. Similar ORs were observed in analyses that: adjusted for additional risk factors; disaggregated the composite outcome and reduced the scope for selection or collider bias. In MR analyses, the OR for adverse COVID-19 outcomes was directionally concordant but non-significant. Interpretation Shorter LTL is associated with higher risk of adverse COVID-19 outcomes, independent of several major risk factors for COVID-19 including age. Further data are needed to determine whether this association reflects causality. Funding UK Medical Research Council, Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council and British Heart Foundation.
| Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Title: | Shorter leukocyte telomere length is associated with adverse COVID-19 outcomes: A cohort study in UK Biobank |
| Open access status: | An open access version is available from UCL Discovery |
| DOI: | 10.1016/j.ebiom.2021.103485 |
| Publisher version: | https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ebiom.2021.103485 |
| Language: | English |
| Additional information: | This version is the author accepted manuscript. For information on re-use, please refer to the publisher’s terms and conditions. |
| Keywords: | Science & Technology, Life Sciences & Biomedicine, Medicine, General & Internal, Medicine, Research & Experimental, General & Internal Medicine, Research & Experimental Medicine, MENDELIAN RANDOMIZATION, BIAS |
| UCL classification: | UCL UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Population Health Sciences > UCL GOS Institute of Child Health UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Population Health Sciences > UCL GOS Institute of Child Health > Population, Policy and Practice Dept |
| URI: | https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10140194 |
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