Determinants of temporal change in telomere length and its associations with chronic complications and mortality in type 2 diabetes: the Fremantle diabetes study phase II
Authors' conclusion
In adults with type 2 diabetes, rTL does not always shorten over time. rTL and ∆rTL were associated with baseline conventional cardiometabolic risk factors but not independently with major incident complications. There was a weak association between ∆rTL and CVD mortality. These findings question the utility of rTL and ∆rTL in usual type 2 diabetes care.
Study context
- Population
- Adults with T2D from the Australian community-based FDS2 cohort with baseline and Year-4 relative telomere length (rTL) measured by qPCR
- Participants
- 819 adults
- Exposure
- ΔrTL categories and rTL vs complications and mortality
- Outcome
- Determinants of rTL change over 4 years (ΔrTL), and associations of rTL and ΔrTL with major complications, CVD death and all-cause mortality
- Follow-up
- Mean ± SD 11.5 ± 2.1 years
Methodological detailscommunity-based, Fremantle Diabetes Study Phase II
- Community-based
- Fremantle Diabetes Study Phase II
Main finding
As reported in the abstract
ΔrTL category distribution · Year-4 (mean ± SD 4.2 ± 0.4 years)
Shortened
25.5%
Unchanged
10.5%
Lengthened
64.0%
Observational data: associations, not effects.
Further findings
Incident micro- or macrovascular complications
- No statistically significant unadjusted or age- and sex-adjusted associations between baseline rTL, Year-4 rTL, or ∆rTL and any incident micro- or macrovascular complications
CVD death
- ∆rTL lengthening and lower risk of CVD death, HR (unadjusted Cox regression)
- 0.98 (0.97, 0.99), P = 0.042
- Unadjusted Cox regression; non-significant after adjustment for conventional risk factors
Correlation of rTL with age
- rTL inversely correlated with age
- r = - 0.186, P < 0.001
Original publication
Determinants of temporal change in telomere length and its associations with chronic complications and mortality in type 2 diabetes: the Fremantle diabetes study phase II. Cardiovasc Diabetol. Published 3 July 2025. doi:10.
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