Heavy metals, epigenetic aging, and mortality: A cohort study

Area of Science:

• Environmental Health
• Epigenetics
• Toxicology

Background:

• Aging is influenced by genetics and environment, but the role of epigenetic aging in environmental exposures and mortality is unclear.
• Understanding these links is crucial for public health and aging research.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the associations between urinary metal exposure, epigenetic-age acceleration markers (EAMs), and mortality risk.
• To assess the mediating role of EAMs in the metal exposure-mortality relationship.

Main Methods:

• Data from 807 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey participants were analyzed.
• Six EAMs were derived from DNA methylation residuals.
• Multiple regression and mediation analyses were used to evaluate relationships between metal exposure, EAMs, and mortality.

Main Results:

• Elevated urinary cadmium, barium, antimony, and tungsten correlated with increased mortality risk.
• Metal exposure accelerated epigenetic aging, with specific metals strongly associated with EAMs like GrimAge-Resid and DunedinPoAm.
• EAMs partially mediated the relationship between cadmium/barium exposure and mortality risk.

Conclusions:

• Urinary metal exposure is associated with increased mortality risk.
• Epigenetic aging partially mediates the link between metal exposure and mortality.
• Findings emphasize the role of epigenetic aging in environmental health outcomes.