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Updated: May 6, 2026

Telomere Length and Telomerase Activity; A Yin and Yang of Cell Senescence
Published on: May 22, 2013
Accelerated telomere shortening in rheumatic diseases: cause or consequence?
Amina Z A Dehbi1, Timothy R D J Radstake, Jasper C A Broen
1Laboratory of translational immunology, University Medical Center Utrecht , Lundlaan 6, 3584 EA Utrecht, The Netherlands.
Abstract:
Accelerated aging of the immune system (immune aging), represented by telomere shortening, has been implicated in a variety of rheumatic diseases. Studies addressing telomere shortening in rheumatic diseases so far yielded controversial results. The current review aims to provide an overview on the role of immune aging in a plethora of immune-mediated conditions including systemic sclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis, systemic lupus erythematosus and osteoarthritis. The main question this review aims to answer is whether rheumatic diseases cause accelerated aging or that accelerated aging drives rheumatic diseases.
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