ArticleExperimental gerontology2013
Longer leukocyte telomere length in Costa Rica's Nicoya Peninsula: a population-based study.
Article in Experimental gerontology, 2013. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 32 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
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Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
32 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Redefining Age-Friendly Neighbourhoods: Translating the Promises of Blue Zones for Contemporary Urban Environments.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2024Pooled it
- Telomere length and health outcomes: A two-sample genetic instrumental variables analysis.Experimental gerontology · 2016Pooled it
- Aging Out of the Blue: Region-Specific Epigenetic Clock Calibration for a Blue Zone with the DNAm SuperLearner.medRxiv : the preprint server for health sciences · 2026Article
- Molecular markers, mechanisms and metrics of biological aging: a scoping review.Frontiers in aging · 2026Review
- Blue Zones, an Analysis of Existing Evidence through a Scoping Review.Aging and disease · 2025Article
- Driving research on successful aging and neuroprotection in Latin America: Insights from the inaugural symposium on brain resilience and healthy longevity.Alzheimer's & dementia : the journal of the Alzheimer's Association · 2025Review
- Healthy Diets and Lifestyles in the World: Mediterranean and Blue Zone People Live Longer. Special Focus on Gut Microbiota and Some Food Components.Endocrine, metabolic & immune disorders drug targets · 2024Review
- Review
- Association of Telomere Length with Colorectal Cancer Risk and Prognosis: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Cancers · 2023Review
- Epigenome-wide association study and epigenetic age acceleration associated with cigarette smoking among Costa Rican adults.Scientific reports · 2022Article
- Gender Differences in Perceived Stress and Its Relationship to Telomere Length in Costa Rican Adults.Frontiers in psychology · 2022Article
- Sex differences in epigenetic age in Mediterranean high longevity regions.Frontiers in aging · 2022Article
- Diet and Leukocyte Telomere Length in a Population with Extended Longevity: The Costa Rican Longevity and Healthy Aging Study (CRELES).Nutrients · 2021Article
- Genetically Increased Telomere Length and Aging-Related Traits in the U.K. Biobank.The journals of gerontology. Series A, Biological sciences and medical sciences · 2021Article
- Dietary Habits, Anthropometric Features and Daily Performance in Two Independent Long-Lived Populations fromNutrients · 2020Article
- Article
- A scoping systematic review of social stressors and various measures of telomere length across the life course.Ageing research reviews · 2018Article
- Telomere attrition is associated with declines in medial temporal lobe volume and white matter microstructure in functionally independent older adults.Neurobiology of aging · 2018Article
- Adverse Childhood Experiences among a Community of Resilient Centenarians and Seniors: Implications for a Chronic Disease Prevention Framework.The Permanente journal · 2018Article
- Telomeres, Aging and Exercise: Guilty by Association?International journal of molecular sciences · 2017Review
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
6 authors.
Funding
Abstract
Studies in humans suggest that leukocyte telomere length may act as a marker of biological aging. We investigated whether individuals in the Nicoya region of Costa Rica, known for exceptional longevity, had longer telomere length than those in other parts of the country. After controlling for age, age squared, rurality, rainy season and gender, the mean leukocyte telomere length in Nicoya was substantially longer (81 base pairs, p<0.05) than in other areas of Costa Rica, providing evidence of a biological pathway to which this notable longevity may be related. This relationship remains unchanged (79 base pairs, p<0.05) after statistically controlling for nineteen potential biological, dietary and social and demographic mediators. Thus the difference in the mean leukocyte telomere length that characterizes this unique region does not appear to be explainable by traditional behavioral and biological risk factors. More detailed examination of mean leukocyte telomere length by age shows that the regional telomere length difference declines at older ages.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.