2008 Age Plus Prize Winner

J. Brent Richards
King's College, London
Higher serum vitamin D concentrations are associated with longer leukocyte telomere length in women

Telomeres are a repetitive sequence of DNA found at the end of chromosomes. Telomere length is a measure or "biological marker" of aging and predicts many aging-related diseases such as heart attacks and osteoporosis. The factors that influence telomere length are currently not well known. Dr. Richards and his colleagues were the first to describe that people with higher levels of vitamin D have healthier (longer) telomeres.

In this study, telomere lengths and vitamin D levels were measured in 2,160 women from the United Kingdom. Dr. Richards and his colleagues then sought to determine if women with higher vitamin D levels have longer telomeres. Results showed that women with the highest vitamin D levels had telomeres that were similar to the telomere length of women 5 years younger, when compared to women with the lowest vitamin D levels.

These results suggest that an easily modifiable environmental factor may influence telomere length. Since telomere length influences several aging-related diseases, the researchers have hypothesized that vitamin D may act on these diseases through an effect on telomeres.

Dr. Richards was fortunate to receive a CIHR-Institute of Aging Fellowship to take up research on telomeres. He has returned to Canada from the United Kingdom to join the Faculty at McGill University, where he plans to continue his research into both vitamin D and telomere length. The next stage in his career is to develop a successful independent research program focused on aging-related diseases.