Lu Xiuzhen, Yu Xiao, Zhang Yi, Pan Jin, Zhao Binbin, Sun Ying, Chen Xin
College & Hospital of Stomatology, Key Lab. of Oral Diseases Research of Anhui Province, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, 230032, China.
Department of Maternal, Child & Adolescent Health, School of Public Health, Anhui Medical University, 81st Meishan Road, Hefei, 230032, Anhui Province, China.
BMC Oral Health. 2025 Apr 11;25(1):524. doi: 10.1186/s12903-025-05910-w.
Early-life adversity (ELA) has been linked to accelerated biological development. This study aimed to explore the cumulative effects of different dimensions of early-life adversity (ELA) on accelerating biological aging, as indicated by the accelerated eruption of the second permanent molar (M2).
Participants were drawn from an ongoing cohort of 1,448 children aged 7-12 years who were recruited following a 2-year follow-up and 1,191 children were ultimately included in this study. A multi-informant assessment of exposure to threat-related, deprivation-related, and unpredictability-related ELA was performed at baseline. Statistical analyses were performed via an accelerated failure time (AFT) model.
The analysis revealed that parents of 1,558 children (mean [SD] age, 9.2 [1.3] years) reported exposure to different types of ELA dimensions (threat, deprivation, and unpredictability) in their offspring. During a 2-year follow-up, three waves of physical and dental examinations were administered to the participants. The M2 accelerated eruption rate was 13.4% (209/1,558) at baseline and increased to 34.7% (444/1,280) at wave 3, with no significant sex difference (boys: 25.8%, girls: 26.3%). Deprivation-related (HR = 1.07, 95%CI: 1.12-2.29, P = 0.046) and unpredictability-related ELA (HR = 1.15, 95%CI: 1.06-1.25, P = 0.001) were found to be associated with M2 accelerated eruption over a two-year follow-up period, whereas threat-related ELA showed no such association. Notably, high ELA exposure in each dimension resulted in an increased risk of M2 accelerated eruption. These associations remained stable after controlling for covariates.
The findings suggest that ELA-induced acceleration of biological aging can be detected at the time of molar eruption in a dimension-specific and dose-specific manner. These results emphasize the importance of considering the different dimensions and levels of ELA exposure when evaluating its impact on biological aging.
早期生活逆境(ELA)与生物发育加速有关。本研究旨在探讨早期生活逆境(ELA)不同维度对生物衰老加速的累积影响,以第二恒磨牙(M2)提前萌出为指标。
研究对象来自一个正在进行的队列,该队列有1448名7至12岁儿童,经过2年随访后最终纳入1191名儿童。在基线时对与威胁相关、剥夺相关和不可预测性相关的ELA暴露情况进行多渠道评估。通过加速失效时间(AFT)模型进行统计分析。
分析显示,1558名儿童(平均[标准差]年龄为9.2[1.3]岁)的父母报告其后代暴露于不同类型的ELA维度(威胁、剥夺和不可预测性)。在2年随访期间,对参与者进行了三轮身体和牙科检查。M2提前萌出率在基线时为13.4%(209/1558),在第三轮时增至34.7%(444/1280),无显著性别差异(男孩:25.8%,女孩:26.3%)。在两年随访期内,发现与剥夺相关的ELA(风险比[HR]=1.07,95%置信区间[CI]:1.12 - 2.29,P=0.046)和与不可预测性相关的ELA(HR=1.15,95%CI:1.06 - 1.25,P=0.001)与M2提前萌出有关,而与威胁相关的ELA未显示出这种关联。值得注意的是,每个维度的高ELA暴露都会导致M2提前萌出风险增加。在控制协变量后,这些关联仍然稳定。
研究结果表明,在磨牙萌出时,可以按维度和剂量特异性的方式检测到ELA引起的生物衰老加速。这些结果强调了在评估ELA对生物衰老的影响时,考虑其暴露的不同维度和水平的重要性。