Wolf, E., Logue, M., Morrison, F. G., Wilcox, E. S., Stone, A., Schichman, S., McGlinchey, R., Milberg, W., & Miller, M. W. (2019). Posttraumatic psychopathology and the pace of the epigenetic clock: a longitudinal investigation. Psychol Med, 49, 791-800.
NOTES
1469-8978Wolf, Erika JLogue, Mark WMorrison, Filomene GWilcox, Elizabeth SStone, AnnjanetteSchichman, Steven AMcGlinchey, Regina EMilberg, William PMiller, Mark WI01 CX001276/CX/CSRD VA/United StatesR03 AG051877/AG/NIA NIH HHS/United StatesR21 MH102834/MH/NIMH NIH HHS/United StatesT32 MH019836/MH/NIMH NIH HHS/United StatesJournal ArticleResearch Support, N.I.H., ExtramuralResearch Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S.Psychol Med. 2019 Apr;49(5):791-800. doi: 10.1017/S0033291718001411. Epub 2018 Jun 13.
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and stress/trauma exposure are cross-sectionally associated with advanced DNA methylation age relative to chronological age. However, longitudinal inquiry and examination of associations between advanced DNA methylation age and a broader range of psychiatric disorders is lacking. The aim of this study was to examine if PTSD, depression, generalized anxiety, and alcohol-use disorders predicted acceleration of DNA methylation age over time (i.e. an increasing pace, or rate of advancement, of the epigenetic clock). METHODS: Genome-wide DNA methylation and a comprehensive set of psychiatric symptoms and diagnoses were assessed in 179 Iraq/Afghanistan war veterans who completed two assessments over the course of approximately 2 years. Two DNA methylation age indices (Horvath and Hannum), each a weighted index of an array of genome-wide DNA methylation probes, were quantified. The pace of the epigenetic clock was operationalized as change in DNA methylation age as a function of time between assessments. RESULTS: Analyses revealed that alcohol-use disorders (p = 0.001) and PTSD avoidance and numbing symptoms (p = 0.02) at Time 1 were associated with an increasing pace of the epigenetic clock over time, per the Horvath (but not the Hannum) index of cellular aging. CONCLUSIONS: This is the first study to suggest that posttraumatic psychopathology is longitudinally associated with a quickened pace of the epigenetic clock. Results raise the possibility that accelerated cellular aging is a common biological consequence of stress-related psychopathology, which carries implications for identifying mechanisms of stress-related cellular aging and developing interventions to slow its pace.
Last updated on 03/06/2023
