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A review of telomere length in sarcopenia and frailty

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Abstract

Sarcopenia and frailty are associated with several important health-related adverse events, including disability, loss of independence, institutionalization and mortality. Sarcopenia can be considered a biological substrate of frailty, and the prevalence of both these conditions progressively increases with age. Telomeres are nucleoprotein structures located at the end of linear chromosomes and implicated in cellular ageing, shorten with age, and are associated with various age-related diseases. In addition, telomere length (TL) is widely considered a molecular/cellular hallmark of the ageing process. This narrative review summarizes the knowledge about telomeres and analyzes for the first time a possible association of TL with sarcopenia and frailty. The overview provided by the present review suggests that leukocyte TL as single measurement, calculated by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR), cannot be considered a meaningful biological marker for complex, multidimensional age-related conditions, such as sarcopenia and frailty. Panels of biomarkers, including TL, may provide more accurate assessment and prediction of outcomes in these geriatric syndromes in elderly people.

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Acknowledgements

We thank “Centro Studi Achille e Linda Lorenzon” for supporting ML. We are grateful to Katie Palmer for the English language revision.

Funding

The work of ML has been supported by the “Centro Studi Achille e Linda Lorenzon”.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Laboratory of Biogerontology, Department of Geriatrics, Neurosciences and Orthopedics, A. Gemelli Foundation, Catholic University of the Sacred Heart, School of Medicine, L.go F. Vito 1, 00168, Rome, Italy

    Maria Lorenzi & Silvia Giovannini

  2. Unit of Clinical and Molecular Epidemiology, IRCCS San Raffaele Pisana, Via di Val Cannuta 247, 00166, Rome, Italy

    Stefano Bonassi

  3. Department of Experimental and Clinical Medicine, Section of Neuroscience and Cell Biology, School of Medicine, Università Politecnica delle Marche, Via Tronto 10/A, 60020, Ancona, Italy

    Teresa Lorenzi

  4. Department of Geriatrics, Neurosciences and Orthopedics, A. Gemelli Foundation, Catholic University of the Sacred Heart, School of Medicine, L.go F. Vito 1, 00168, Rome, Italy

    Roberto Bernabei & Graziano Onder

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  1. Maria Lorenzi
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  2. Stefano Bonassi
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  3. Teresa Lorenzi
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  4. Silvia Giovannini
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Correspondence to Maria Lorenzi.

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Lorenzi, M., Bonassi, S., Lorenzi, T. et al. A review of telomere length in sarcopenia and frailty. Biogerontology 19, 209–221 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10522-018-9749-5

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