Table 1. Reduced telomerase levels in schizophrenia.
Telomerase levels were quantitated from peripheral blood lymphocytes. The subjects were evaluated in two different ways: First, they were categorized into four groups – unaffected controls (Control), unaffected relatives (Family), and two schizophrenia cohorts, A and B; Second, they were categorized into two groups – all unaffected individuals were combined into a single control group [Control+Family], while schizophrenia cohorts A and B were combined into a single schizophrenia group [Schizophrenia (A+B)]. In each evaluation, one-way ANOVA was conducted with telomerase level as the dependent variable and diagnostic group as the independent variable; pairwise comparisons were conducted on means of telomerase levels as well as age in the different diagnostic groups, and Tukey-Kramer multiple comparison adjustments were applied to the p-values reported below. There was a significant association between diagnostic group and telomerase level in both the 4-group data and 2-group data sets (F=3.89, df=3, p=0.01; and F=6.77, df=1, p=0.01, respectively). There were age differences between some of the diagnostic groups, but no effect of age or sex was observed on telomerase levels. The only significant finding in the 4-group data analyses was between unaffected relatives (Family) and schizophrenia cohort A (Schizophrenia A). In the 2-group analyses, a nominally significant difference was observed between all controls [Control+Family] and all individuals with schizophrenia [Schizophrenia (A+B)].
| Diagnostic Group | n (age) | Age (Mean ± SD) | n (TL) | TL (Mean ± SD) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Control | 59 | 27.33 ± 8.14 | 59 | 11.44 ± 1.90 |
| 2 | Family | 25 | 30.97 ± 14.05 | 31 | 12.24 ± 1.03 |
| 3 | Schizophrenia A | 30 | 37.37 ± 9.00 a | 30 | 10.55 ± 2.56 e |
| 4 | Schizophrenia B | 23 | 39.00 ± 10.91 b,c | 23 | 11.18 ± 2.17 |
| 1+2 | Control+Family | 84 | 28.41 ± 10.30 | 90 | 11.72 ± 1.69 |
| 3+4 | Schizophrenia (A+B) | 53 | 38.07 ± 9.81d | 53 | 10.82 ± 2.40 f |
age was significant at p<0.05: a=1 vs 3, p=0.0001; b=1 vs 4, p=0.0001; c=2 vs 4, p=0.03; d=(1+2) vs (3+4), p<0.0001. Note that there are some missing values for age, as shown in the column “n (age)”.
Mean telomerase level was significant at p<0.05: e=2 vs.3, p=0.005.
Mean telomerase level was significant at p<0.05: f=(1+2) vs.(3+4), p=0.01.