Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40913436›Full record

ArticleAmerican journal of human biology : the official journal of the Human Biology Council2025

Remote Blood Collection for Telomere Length Measurement: Assessing the Impact of Sample Characteristics and Handling on DNA Quality and Assay Outcomes.

Quinn A Conklin, Dana L Smith, Guorui Dai, Brandon G King, Clifford D Saron, Jue Lin

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Article in American journal of human biology : the official journal of the Human Biology Council, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

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.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

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.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

2 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors.

Quinn A ConklinCenter for Mind and Brain, University of California, Davis, Davis, California, USA.ORCID 0000-0002-6121-2934
Dana L SmithUniversity of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, California, USA.
Guorui DaiUniversity of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, California, USA.
Brandon G KingCenter for Mind and Brain, University of California, Davis, Davis, California, USA.
Clifford D SaronCenter for Mind and Brain, University of California, Davis, Davis, California, USA.
Jue LinUniversity of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, California, USA.

Funding

Stress, diet quality, and biological aging across the lifespanR24AG048024 · NIA · UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN FRANCISCO · PI EPEL, ELISSA S., MENDES, WENDY BERRY · 2014 to 2025
$6.2M
Optimization and standardization of telomere length measurement by qPCR for population-based health researchU01AG064785 · NIA · UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN FRANCISCO · PI LIN, JUE · 2019 to 2021
$980k
Fetzer Institute 4333Hershey Family FoundationMind and Life InstituteNIA NIH HHS R24 AG048024NIA NIH HHS R24AG048024NIA NIH HHS U01 AG064785NIH HHS U01AG064785Tom and Nancy Driscoll FoundationYoga Science Foundation
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundTelomere length (TL) is a valuable marker of aging and stress that reflects both genetic and environmental influences. Quantitative PCR (qPCR) TL measurement is a powerful and cost-effective assay, especially in population studies with limited quantities of source material. Nevertheless, collecting and transporting high-quality blood samples can be logistically challenging, and research suggests that several preanalytical and analytical factors can influence the reliability and precision of the qPCR assay. Here we describe a procedure for collecting blood remotely in a large-scale study. We then assess the influence of various features of the samples, as well as their collection, transportation, and storage on DNA quality and TL assay outcomes.

methodParticipants used at-home collection kits to collect a few drops of whole blood in BD Microtainers during a baseline (n = 265) and 1-year follow-up (n = 178) assessment. DNA was extracted using a magnetic-bead method, and DNA yield, purity, and integrity were assessed. TL was measured using qPCR. To assess inter-assay variation, the coefficient of variation (CV) was calculated across repeated TL measurements (three runs) for each sample. When there was adequate material for duplicate extractions of DNA from the same blood samples, we calculated the intra-class correlation (ICC) of the resultant TL values to assess assay precision.

resultsOur analyses revealed that as little as 50 μL of blood yielded sufficient DNA for highly precise TL measurement (ICC = 0.962, n = 365). Transportation time and an additional year of storage time at -80°C did not meaningfully affect DNA quality or assay outcomes. However, blood clotting was associated with longer telomere estimates, whereas greater temperature exposure was related to shorter telomere estimates.

conclusionsWe established that whole blood collected remotely in BD Microtainers can provide a valid sample source for qPCR TL measurement. We also outline important logistical considerations related to sample collection and handling and provide recommendations for researchers who want to use this method.

Indexed as

Blood Specimen CollectionDNATelomereAdultAgedFemaleHumansMaleMiddle AgedReal-Time Polymerase Chain ReactionReproducibility of ResultsDNACOVID‐19 pandemicpopulation studiesremote blood collectionstresstelomere length

Identifiers

PMID40913436
PMCPMC12413658

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LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
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Registered trials

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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.