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Updated: Jun 27, 2025
Telomere Length and Telomerase Activity; A Yin and Yang of Cell Senescence
Published on: May 22, 2013
Association between maternal depression symptoms and child telomere length
Caroline G Walker1, Zaneta M Thayer2, Emma J Marks1
1Centre for Longitudinal Research - He Ara ki Mua and Growing Up in New Zealand, University of Auckland, New Zealand.
The biological mechanisms that explain how adverse early life events influence adult disease risk are poorly understood. One proposed mechanism is via the induction of accelerated biological aging, for which telomere length is considered a biomarker. We aimed to determine if maternal depression pre- and post-partum was associated with telomere length in children at 4 years of age (n = 4299). Mothers completed structured questionnaires assessing depression during pregnancy (Edinburgh Depression Scale), at 9 months (Edinburgh Depression Scale), and at 54 months postpartum (Patient Health Questionnaire 9). Regression methods were used to investigate the relationship between telomere length (DNA from saliva) and maternal depression score recorded at each stage. Significant covariates included in the final model were: maternal age at pregnancy; child sex; child ethnicity; gestational age group, and rurality group. Child telomere length was found to be longer if their mother had a higher depression score at both postpartum time points tested (9 months of age; coefficient 0.003, SE = 0.001, P = 0.01, 54 months of age; coefficient 0.003, SE = 0.002, P = 0.02). Although these findings seem paradoxical, increased telomere length may be an adaptive response to early life stressors. We propose several testable hypotheses for these results and to determine if the positive association between depression and telomere length is a developmental adaptation or an indirect consequence of environmental factors.
The biological mechanisms that explain how adverse early life events influence adult disease risk are poorly understood. One proposed mechanism is via the induction of accelerated biological aging, for which telomere length is considered a biomarker. We aimed to determine if maternal depression pre- and post-partum was associated with telomere length in children at 4 years of age (n = 4299). Mothers completed structured questionnaires assessing depression during pregnancy (Edinburgh Depression Scale), at 9 months (Edinburgh Depression Scale), and at 54 months postpartum (Patient Health Questionnaire 9). Regression methods were used to investigate the relationship between telomere length (DNA from saliva) and maternal depression score recorded at each stage. Significant covariates included in the final model were: maternal age at pregnancy; child sex; child ethnicity; gestational age group, and rurality group. Child telomere length was found to be longer if their mother had a higher depression score at both postpartum time points tested (9 months of age; coefficient 0.003, SE = 0.001, P = 0.01, 54 months of age; coefficient 0.003, SE = 0.002, P = 0.02). Although these findings seem paradoxical, increased telomere length may be an adaptive response to early life stressors. We propose several testable hypotheses for these results and to determine if the positive association between depression and telomere length is a developmental adaptation or an indirect consequence of environmental factors.
Frequently Asked Questions
The study found that higher maternal scores at nine and 54 months postpartum were linked with longer chromosomal caps in four-year-old children. The researchers suggest this unexpected increase might represent a biological adaptation to early life stress rather than the typical pattern of accelerated cellular aging.
Regression analysis showed a positive coefficient of 0.003 for maternal depression scores at both nine months (p=0.01) and 54 months (p=0.02) postpartum. These values indicate that as maternal distress increased, the measured length of the child's salivary DNA telomeres also increased significantly.
The EDS allowed researchers to quantify maternal psychological distress during pregnancy and at nine months postpartum. By using this standardized tool, the team identified that only postpartum scores, not prenatal ones, significantly correlated with the child telomere length measured at age four.
The findings are specifically confined to maternal distress reported at nine and 54 months postpartum. The study observed no significant association between prenatal depression scores and child telomere length, suggesting the results may not apply to stress experienced solely during the gestational period.
The study's authors propose that future investigations should determine if this positive association is a direct developmental adaptation or an indirect consequence of environmental factors. They state that further testing is required to understand how these longer telomeres influence long-term health and adult disease risk.
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