Parental age influences offspring telomere loss

The age of the parents at the time of offspring production can influence offspring longevity, but the underlying mechanisms remain poorly understood. The effect of parental age on offspring telomere dynamics (length and loss rate) is one mechanism that could be important in this context.
Parental age might influence the telomere length that offspring inherit or age-related differences in the quality of parental care could influence the rate of offspring telomere loss. However, these routes have generally not been disentangled.
Here, we investigated whether parental age was related to offspring telomere dynamics using parents ranging in age from 2 to 22 years old in a free-living population of a long-lived seabird, the European shag (Phalacrocorax aristotelis). By measuring the telomere length of offspring at hatching and towards the end of the post-natal growth period, we could assess whether any potential parental age effect was confined to the post-natal rearing period.
There was n...

亲本在繁育子代时的年龄会对子代寿命产生影响，但其背后的潜在机制仍未得到充分阐明。亲本年龄对子代端粒（telomere）动态（包括端粒长度与损耗速率）的影响，正是该研究范畴内潜在的关键机制之一。
亲本年龄既可能影响子代所继承的端粒长度，也可能因亲本抚育质量随年龄变化的差异，进而改变子代端粒的损耗速率。但目前学界尚未能将这两条作用路径清晰区分开来。
本研究以长寿海鸟欧洲鸬鹚（*Phalacrocorax aristotelis*）的野生种群为研究对象，选取年龄跨度为2至22岁的亲本，探究亲本年龄与子代端粒动态之间的关联。通过分别测定子代孵化时及产后生长末期的端粒长度，本研究得以评估亲本年龄所产生的潜在效应是否仅局限于产后抚育阶段。