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Updated: Jun 9, 2025

Telomere Length and Telomerase Activity; A Yin and Yang of Cell Senescence
Published on: May 22, 2013
Exploring the Relationship between Telomere Length and Cognitive Changes in Post-COVID-19 Subjects
Guillermo Efrén Villar-Juárez1, Alma Delia Genis-Mendoza2,3, J Nicolas I Martínez-López4
1Escuela de Medicina, Universidad Anáhuac Querétaro, Querétaro 76246, Mexico.
Background/Objectives:
Emerging evidence suggests that patients suffering from COVID-19 may experience neurocognitive symptoms. Furthermore, other studies indicate a probable association between leukocyte telomere length (LTL) and neurocognitive changes in subjects with post-COVID-19 condition. Our study was designed to determine the correlation between telomere length and cognitive changes in post-COVID-19 subjects.
Methods:
This study included 256 subjects, categorized based on SARS-CoV-2 infection from 2020 to 2023. In addition, subjects with a psychiatric diagnosis were considered. Moreover, the MoCA and MMSE scales were applied. Telomere length was determined using a polymerase chain reaction, and statistical analysis was employed using ANOVA and X2 tests.
Results:
We identified a decrease in LTL in individuals with post-COVID-19 conditions compared to those without SARS-CoV-2 infection (p ≤ 0.05). However, no association was found between LTL and cognitive impairment in the subjects post-COVID-19.
Conclusions:
The findings suggest that LTL is affected by SARS-CoV-2 infection. Nonetheless, this important finding requires further research by monitoring neurological changes in subjects with post-COVID condition.
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