Table 1.
Characteristics of Participants from the Austrian Stroke Prevention Study (ASPS) Who Provided DNA Samples for Measurement of Relative Leukocyte Telomere Length (LTL)
| Characteristic | Total, N = 786 | Female, n = 456 | Male, n = 330 | <65, n = 374 | ≥65, n = 412 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Demographic, mean ± SD | |||||
| Age | 66.0 ± 7.0 | 66.5 ± 8.0b | 65.2 ± 7.6 | 59.1 ± 4.3c | 72.2 ± 4.7 |
| Body mass index, kg/m2 | 26.9 ± 4.1 | 26.7 ± 4.6 | 27.2 ± 3.2 | 26.3 ± 3.9c | 27.4 ± 4.1 |
| Maximum oxygen uptake | 1.96 ± 0.46 | 1.75 ± 0.36 | 2.20 ± 0.44 | 2.06 ± 0.46 | 1.86 ± 0.42 |
| Vascular risk factor | |||||
| Alcohol consumption, n (%) | 87 (11) | 17 (3.7)c | 70 (21) | 44 (11.7) | 43 (10.4) |
| Former smoker, n (%) | 220 (28) | 72 (16)c | 148 (45) | 107 (29) | 114 (28) |
| Current smoker, n (%) | 84 (11) | 31 (7)c | 53 (16) | 49 (13) | 35 (9) |
| Diabetes mellitus, n (%) | 76 (10) | 41 (9) | 35 (10.6) | 22 (5.9) | 54 (13) |
| Fasting glucose, mg/dL, mean ± SD | 95.3 ± 24.6 | 94.2 ± 25.3 | 96.8 ± 23.5 | 93.3 ± 22.1b | 97.1 ± 26.6 |
| Glycosylated hemoglobin, % mean ± SD | 5.7 ± 0.75 | 5.8 ± 0.76 | 5.7 ± 0.74 | 5.6 ± 0.72c | 5.9 ± 0.76 |
| Insulin resistance, mean ± SD | 9.2 ± 5.4 | 9.4 ± 6.2 | 9.1 ± 4.4 | 8.9 ± 5.4 | 10.1 ± 5.6 |
| Hypertension, n (%) | 574 (73) | 331 (72) | 243 (73.6) | 224 (60) | 350 (85) |
| Mean systolic blood pressure, mm/Hg, mean ± SD | 145.0 ± 23.8 | 145.5 ± 24.9 | 144.8 ± 22 | 137.2 ± 20.8c | 152.2 ± 24.1 |
| Mean diastolic blood pressure, mm/Hg, mean ± SD | 88.2 ± 10.6 | 88.4 ± 10.9 | 88.0 ± 10.1 | 86.6 ± 10c | 89.7 ± 10.9 |
| C-reactive protein, mg/L, median (IQR) | 2.0 (0.9–4.0) | 2.2 (0.9–4.4) | 1.7 (0.8–3.3) | 1.9 (0.9–3.4) | 2.1 (0.9–4.5) |
| Antioxidants, μmol/L | |||||
| Provitamin A: carotenoids | |||||
| α-carotene, median (IQR) | 0.07 (0.04–0.12) | 0.08 (0.05–0.13) | 0.05 (0.03–0.08) | 0.07 (0.04–0.12) | 0.07 (0.04–0.11) |
| β-carotene, median (IQR) | 0.40 (0.25–0.67) | 0.49 (0.32–0.78) | 0.31 (0.19–0.48) | 0.40 (0.25–0.71) | 0.39 (0.25–0.64) |
| β-cryptoxanthin, mean ± SD | 0.26 ± 0.23 | 0.30 ± 0.24c | 0.22 ± 0.21 | 0.26 ± 0.23 | 0.26 ± 0.22 |
| Retinol, mean ± SD | 1.93 ± 0.66 | 1.79 ± 0.63c | 2.13 ± 0.65 | 1.91 ± 0.70b | 1.84 ± 0.61 |
| Non-provitamin A: carotenoids, mean ± SD | |||||
| Lutein and zeaxanthin | 0.56 ± 0.23 | 0.57 ± 0.24 | 0.54 ± 0.22 | 0.56 ± 0.22 | 0.56 ± 0.23 |
| Canthaxanthin | 0.12 ± 0.06 | 0.12 ± 0.06c | 0.11 ± 0.06 | 0.12 ± 0.06b | 0.11 ± 0.06 |
| Lycopene | 0.22 ± 0.17 | 0.22 ± 0.18 | 0.21 ± 0.17 | 0.24 ± 0.18b | 0.19 ± 0.16 |
| Vitamin E, mean ± SD | |||||
| α-tocopherol | 30.1 ± 8.9 | 30.6 ± 8.7b | 29.4 ± 9.3 | 30.1 ± 9.0 | 30.2 ± 8.9 |
| γ-tocopherol | 2.30 ± 1.09 | 2.24 ± 0.98b | 2.45 ± 1.20 | 2.31 ± 1.10 | 2.34 ± 1.10 |
| Vitamin C | 57.7 ± 20.5 | 63.6 ± 18.9c | 49.5 ± 19.8 | 58.7 ± 20.5 | 56.8 ± 20.5 |
| Advanced oxidation protein product, nmol/mg of protein, mean ± SD | 3.3 ± 2.6 | 3.1 ± 2.4c | 3.6 ± 2.7 | 3.5 ± 2.9 | 3.1 ± 2.2 |
| LTL, median (IQR)a | 0.61 (0.05–2.60) | 0.60 (0.05–2.60) | 0.62 (0.23–2.37) | 0.62 (0.16–2.23) | 0.60 (0.05–2.60) |
The unpaired t-test was performed for normally distributed continuous variables, the chi-square test for categorized variables, and the Mann–Whitney U-test for nonnormally distributed data.
SD = standard deviation; IQR = interquartile range.
a
Calculated relative LTL was normalized to a T/S ratio of reference deoxyribonucleic acid (pooled from 24 subjects of different age and sex).
b
P< .05.
c
P< .001.