Scientists have developed a new method of determining the body's biological age, which they believe is more helpful than birth age in studying how well or badly the body is aging.
A simple blood test can pinpoint who is at high risk of dementia and can even predict when a person will die, further affecting medicine, insurance and pensions.
In a collaborative study conducted for seven years, researchers at King's College London, Duke University in the United States and Karolinska Institutet used RNA-profiling to measure gene expression and compared them with samples of thousands of human tissue. Findings of the study were published online in the journal Genome Biology
The researchers found a way to help better the management of diseases related to age by singling out those who are at the highest risk of such diseases which could further improve evaluations of anti-aging treatments.
"Given the biological complexity of the aging process, until now there has been no reliable way to measure how well a person is aging compared with their peers," said Professor James Timmons from King's College London's Division of Genetics and Molecular Medicine. The onset of diseases and their physical capacity, for example, are often used to assess aging in the elderly. Their research now allows the measurement of aging even before signs of decline or illness begin to show.
Instead of looking for genes that are associated with extreme longevity or disease, the researchers found that when 150 genes are activated in the blood, tissue in the brain and muscle showed signs of good health in people 65 years old. This allowed the researchers to reproduce formula for healthy aging. Also, they were able to tell how well or badly a person is aging, in comparison to other people of the same age.
The study revealed an extensive range in biological age scores among people who were born at the same time. The researchers noted that biological age is distinct to and separate from a person's chronological age. In addition, cognitive decline was found to correlate with a low score. This means that to predict those who are at most risk of Alzheimer's or dementia, the molecular test can translate into a simple blood test.
The study also found that a person's score does not correlate with conditions associated with common lifestyle, like diabetes, heart disease. It is likely to represent a unique rate of aging
That is independent of lifestyle choices.
This research, funded by the Medical Research Council, the Wallenberg Foundation, the National Institutes of Health and the Innovative Medicines Initiative, is the first practical test producing accurate results showing the rate at which individual human bodies age.
Photo: Harry Thomas Photography | Flickr
