COPD Outcomes Predicted By Biomarker
Replicative senescence, as measured by telomere length, could help to predict outcomes in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), according to the results of a recent study.1
"Previous studies have suggested that COPD may be a disease of accelerated aging for a variety of reasons including its close relation to senescence-related disorders, such as osteoporosis and dementia, and its exponential increase in prevalence beyond 50 years of age. One important biomarker of replicative senescence is telomere length. It is known that short telomeres are associated with common comorbidities of COPD, such as cardiovascular disease and cancer, but it was not known if there is a relationship between blood telomeres and patient-related outcomes in COPD," the study authors explained.2
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For their study, the researchers used quantitative polymerase chain reaction to measure the absolute telomere length of DNA extracted from the blood of 576 participants with moderate-to-severe COPD who were treated with either azithromycin or placebo for 12 months as part of the Macrolide Azithromycin for Prevention of Exacerbations of COPD (MACRO) study.
Overall, they found that participants with shorter telomere length had worse health status (defined by higher St George’s Respiratory questionnaire scores) than those with longer telomere length. For those taking placebo, the rate of exacerbation and the risk of mortality were significantly higher in those with shorter telomere length than those with longer telomere length. However, these differences were not observed in the azithromycin group.
“These data suggest that replicative senescence may help to predict poor outcomes in COPD. Shorter leukocyte telomere lengths may represent a clinically translatable biomarker for identifying individuals at increased risk of poor clinical outcomes in COPD.”1
—Michael Potts
Reference:
Jin M, Lee EC, Ra SW, et al. Relationship of absolute telomere length with quality of life, exacerbations, and mortality in COPD [published online July 12, 2018]. Chest. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chest.2018.05.022.