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Telomeres are nucleotide repeat sequences located at the end of chromosomes that protect them from degradation and maintain chromosomal stability. Telomeres shorten with each cell division; hence telomere length is associated with aging and longevity. Numerous lifestyle factors have been identified that impact the rate of telomere shortening; high vitamin consumption has been associated with longer telomere length, whereas oxidative stress is associated with telomere shortening. In this paper, we sought to determine if a multivitamin mixture containing both vitamins and a blend of polyphenolic compounds, could reduce telomere shortening consequent to an oxidative stress (10 uM H2O2 for 8 weeks) in a primary fibroblast cell culture model. Under conditions of oxidative stress, the median and 20th percentile telomere length were significantly greater (p < 0.05), and the percentage of critically short telomeres (<3000 bp) was significantly less (p < 0.05) in cells treated with the multivitamin mixture at 4, 15 and 60 ug/ml compared to control (0 ug/ml). Median and 20th percentile telomere shortening rate was also reduced under the same conditions (p < 0.05). Taken together, these findings demonstrate that the multivitamin mixture protects against oxidative stress-mediated telomere shortening in cell culture, findings which may have implications in human health. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Shortened telomeres are associated with aging and age-related diseases. Oxidative stress is thought to be a major contributor to telomere shortening, and antioxidants may be able to mitigate these effects. Ergothioneine is a naturally occurring amino acid with potent antioxidant properties. In order to investigate ergothioneine's effects on telomere length, we cultured primary human fibroblasts under standard and oxidative (10 µM H2O2) conditions and treated cells with 0.04, 0.1, 0.3, or 1.0 mg/ml ergothioneine for 8 weeks. Telomere length measurements were performed using high-throughput quantitative fluorescent in situ hybridization (HT Q-FISH). Treatment with ergothioneine transiently increased relative telomerase activity after 24 h (p < 0.05 for all concentrations). Under oxidative conditions, ergothioneine treatment resulted in significantly longer median telomere length and 20th percentile telomere length, and significantly reduced the percentage of short telomeres (<3 kilobase pairs) for all treatment concentrations after 8 weeks. Telomere shortening rate was also reduced. Overall, ergothioneine demonstrated beneficial effects by decreasing the rate of telomere shortening and preserving telomere length under oxidative stress conditions. Our data support a potential role for ergothioneine in oxidative stress-related conditions and healthy aging. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]