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Pain exposure associates with telomere length erosion in very preterm infants

Livio Provenzi1, Roberto Giorda2, Monica Fumagalli3

  • 10-3 Center for the at-Risk Infant, Scientific Institute IRCCS Eugenio Medea, Bosisio Parini, Italy.

Psychoneuroendocrinology
|February 4, 2018
PubMed

Insights

Very preterm infants experience stress during NICU stays. This stress, measured by skin-breaking procedures, significantly shortens telomere length (TL), impacting infant health.

Area of Science:

  • Neonatal Intensive Care
  • Genetics
  • Developmental Psychology

Background:

  • Very preterm (VPT) infants (<32 weeks gestation) require extended Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) hospitalization.
  • NICU stays involve invasive, painful procedures causing significant early life stress for VPT infants.
  • Early life stress is linked to telomere length (TL) shortening, a marker of biological aging.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To longitudinally assess the association between NICU-related stress and telomere length (TL) in very preterm (VPT) infants.
  • To investigate the impact of NICU-related stress on TL changes from birth to NICU discharge in VPT infants.

Main Methods:

  • Leukocyte telomere length (TL) was measured at birth (cord blood) in 46 VPT infants and 31 full-term (FT) infants.
  • TL was re-assessed at NICU discharge in VPT infants only.
  • NICU-related stress was quantified by the number of skin-breaking procedures during hospitalization.

Main Results:

  • VPT infants had longer TL at birth compared to FT infants.
  • A significant decrease in TL was observed from birth to discharge in VPT infants, particularly those with high NICU-related stress.
  • NICU-related stress emerged as the primary predictor of TL erosion in VPT infants, even after controlling for confounders.

Conclusions:

  • NICU-related stress is a critical factor influencing telomere length erosion in very preterm infants.
  • High levels of NICU-related stress are associated with significant TL shortening in VPT infants.
  • Further research is needed to understand epigenetic factors influencing individual susceptibility to NICU stress and TL changes.

Keywords:
EpigeneticsNICUPreterm infantsStressTelomere

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