Preschoolers with oppositional defiant behavior are more likely to have shorter telomeres, a hallmark of cellular aging, which in adults is associated with increased risk for chronic diseases and conditions like diabetes, obesity and cancer.
This phenomenon was uncovered by UCSF researchers, who also identified maternalclinical depression as an independent predictor for shortened telomeres in young children, according to a study published on Tuesday in the journal Translational Psychiatry.
Likened to the plastic tips of shoelaces, telomeres cap the ends of chromosomes and act as buffers against the loss of protein-coding DNA during cell division. While telomere shortening happens naturally with aging, mounting research indicates the process is accelerated by psychological and biological stress.
"These are the first steps in a new field aiming to understand early determinants of children's telomeres. There are not any studies yet that examine telomere lengthchanges from birth to adulthood, so the long-term implications are unknown," said lead author Janet Wojcicki, PhD, assistant professor in the UCSF Department of Pediatrics. "In adults, however, short telomeres predict earlier onset of many diseases, and shorter telomere length likely tracks from childhood throughout life."
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