An accelerated telomere shortening in male patients with insomnia treated with sleep medication

Introduction: Sleep disturbance has been reported to be in relation to higher occurrence of chronic aging-associated diseases. Insomnia also has been associated with accelerated aging evidenced by accompanying somatic telomere shortening. In this study, we compared telomere length of circulating leukocyte of outpatients administered with sleep medication and those without sleep medication, in order to detect telomere length changes related to insomnia with an extent for which the patients need to take sleeping pill(s). Materials and methods: Study population The profiles of study population are as follows: Sleep medication (+): 16 men administered with sleep medication (68.3+12.6 y.o) Used hypnotics here were zolpidem, zopiclone, triazolam, brotizolam, and estazolam. Sleep medication (≥): 20 men with no sleep medication (67.4+12.7y.o) Telomere length analysis A part of genomic DNA sample extracted from peripheral leukocytes was digested with restriction enzyme Msp I and subjected to Southern blot analysis using telomere DNA probe. The smear results were analyzed by photodensitometry to detect the telomere length and the telomere length distribution. Each smear was divided into 3 ranges (>9.4 kb, 9.4-4.4 kb, and <4.4 kb), and the density of each range was measured. Results: The mean telomere length (TRF) and its distribution of 'Sleep medication (+) and (-)' are as follows: mean TRFs were 6.4+1.0 kb and 6.4+1.1 kb (p = 0.926), the percentages of >9.4 kb (%>9.4 kb) were 27.8+10.3% and 29.0+11.2% (p = 0.743), %<4.4 kb were 14.8+8.7 kb and 16.4+8.4% (p = 0.574). In the simple linear regression analysis of TRF/age, % >9.4 kb/age, and %< 4.4 kb/age, the inclination of 'Sleep medication (+) and (-)' are -0.0441 and -0.0158, -0.500 and -0.236, and 0.412 and 0.126, respectively. The R-squared of 'Sleep medication (+) and (-)' of TRF/ age, %>9.4 kb/age, and %< 4.4 kb/age are 0.319 (p = 0.023) and 0.034 (p = 0.433), 0.374 (p = 0.012) and 0.071 (p = 0.256), and 0.358 (p = 0.014) and 0.035 (p = 0.429), respectively. The mean TRF and its distribution were not different between Sleep medication (+) and (-). However, 'Sleep medication (+)' represent a significant negative correlation of telomere length and age, but 'Hypnotic (-)' did no clear correlation. Conclusions: Patients suffering from insomnia treated with sleep medication are suggested to bear an accelerated telomere shortening. Insomnia with a severity requiring the administration of sleep medication may be in an accelerated phase of aging.