Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40847086›Full record

ArticleScientific reports2025

Obesity impact on leukocyte telomere shortening and immune aging assessed by Mendelian randomization and transcriptomics analysis.

Zhijun Feng, Jiacheng Li, Huimin Zhang, Shupeng Liu, Yinghui Wang, Meijuan Zhou, Zhenhua Ding, Lin Xiao

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Article in Scientific reports, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

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4 · The record

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5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

8 authors.

Zhijun FengPostdoctoral Innovation Practice Base, Jiangmen Central Hospital, Southern Medical University, Jiangmen, 529030, Guangdong, China.
Jiacheng LiDepartment of Radiation Medicine, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Tropical Disease Research, School of Public Health, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, 510515, China.
Huimin ZhangDepartment of Radiation Medicine, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Tropical Disease Research, School of Public Health, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, 510515, China.
Shupeng LiuDepartment of Radiation Medicine, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Tropical Disease Research, School of Public Health, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, 510515, China.
Yinghui WangDepartment of Radiation Medicine, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Tropical Disease Research, School of Public Health, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, 510515, China.
Meijuan ZhouDepartment of Radiation Medicine, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Tropical Disease Research, School of Public Health, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, 510515, China.
Zhenhua DingDepartment of Radiation Medicine, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Tropical Disease Research, School of Public Health, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, 510515, China. dingzh@smu.edu.cn.
Lin XiaoDepartment of Radiation Oncology, Jiangmen Central Hospital, Jiangmen, 529030, Guangdong, China. xiaolin7966165@126.com.

Funding

National Natural Science Foundation of China 82103785 and 82273582
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Obesity and aging are key research topics in contemporary biomedical science. While studies have explored the effects of obesity on various health indicators, the precise mechanisms through which obesity may affect leukocyte telomere length (LTL)-and whether this impact contributes to accelerated immune cell senescence-remain unclear and warrant further investigation. In this study, we employed single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) associated with four obesity indices-body mass index (BMI), body fat percentage (BFP), waist circumference (WC), and waist-hip ratio (WHR)-as instrumental variables (IVs) to assess the causal relationship between these indices and LTL through Mendelian randomization (MR) analysis. Additionally, we analyzed transcriptome sequencing data from peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) across three groups: lean individuals, individuals with obesity before undergoing bariatric surgery, and individuals with obesity after surgery, and focus on the expression changes of cellular senescence and telomere dynamics related genes in PBMCs of individuals with obesity before and after weight loss intervention. The results showed a negative causal relationship between BMI (B=-0.04, P < 0.0001), BFP (B=-0.06, P < 0.0001) and LTL without being impacted by lipid profiles and T2D. The negative causal relationship between WC (B=-0.04, P < 0.0001) and LTL may be dependent on lipid levels, but not on T2D. WHR had no significant causal relationship (P > 0.05). Transcriptomic analysis further revealed that individuals with obesity had higher expression of cellular senescence-related genes such as ID2, LMNA, and TENT4B in PBMCs compared to lean individuals, with expression levels of these genes significantly decreasing after bariatric surgery. These findings underscore the detrimental impact of obesity on telomere attrition and immune cell senescence, highlighting the potential benefits of obesity management for slowing the biological process of cellular and immune aging.

Indexed as

AgingLeukocytesLeukocytes, MononuclearObesityTelomere ShorteningTranscriptomeAdultBody Mass IndexCellular SenescenceFemaleGene Expression ProfilingHumansMaleMendelian Randomization AnalysisMiddle AgedPolymorphism, Single NucleotideBody fat percentageBody mass indexImmune cell senescenceLeukocyte telomere lengthMendelian randomizationObesity indexWaist circumferenceWaist-hip ratio

Identifiers

PMID40847086
PMCPMC12373864

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