The mystery of anti-aging genes

The plan to genome sequence of 1,000 healthy elderly people can shed light on gene variants that help people avoid aging manifestations, including heart disease, cancer, and diabetes; from which people can live healthy to 80 years old and beyond. In addition to focusing on genetic variation that increases the risk of disease, scientists expect to take genes that are linked to health and longevity as a focus.

In recent years, advances in genetic scanning techniques have enabled scientists to explore the genome to gain health clues and prolong life. The research work has revealed that the genomes of healthy elderly people are not without defects. Eric Topol, cardiologist and director of the Genetic Health Program at Scripps Translational Science Institute in La Jolla, CA, said: 'They have genetic markers of dangerous diseases. such as cardiovascular disease, stroke, and diabetes. But they don't have any of them. What is the explanation? What can explain their not getting these diseases? "

To answer the question, researchers are collecting blood samples from 1,000 people aged 80 or older who have never had any serious illness and have never had to take medication. Scientists plan to establish the sequence of 100 genes that affect the health and aging process known by animal studies and other studies. Topol said: 'We are particularly interested in key control genes, or' gene-keeping genes' like genes involved in DNA repair or insulin growth factor-1, which is the protein hormone involved. into cell development. Enzymes involved in DNA repair attract attention in studies of longevity because cells often accumulate errors in their DNA sequence as life increases. Defects in DNA repair genes in mice and humans stimulate the formation of premature aging characteristics. The agency receiving insulin growth factor-1 (IGF1) has been shown to affect aging in mice, nematodes and flies.

Most of the previous studies only sequenced a small number of genes, or using micro-gene networks could quickly identify common gene variants in the genome. But recent studies have shown that the number of rarer gene variants in other genes play a role in health and disease . Gene sequencing helps researchers determine whether healthy elderly people are able to carry gene variants that support the function of protective factors and inhibit the effects of harmful factors.

Topol and his colleagues will compare the genetic sequences of healthy volunteers with DNA samples obtained from people who die from age-related diseases before they reach the age of 80. Scientists found healthy people with chromatograms with low disease-related variants. This reinforces the notion that protective genes play a key role in helping people fight aging.

Studies have shown that some people who carry genes help them live longer. (Photo: Getty)

They hope that finding the molecular basis of protective efficacy will facilitate the study of pharmaceuticals that mimic that effect. Nir Barzilai, director of the Longevity Genome Project at Albert Einstein College of Medicine, New York, said: 'We believe that longevity genes protect people against some aging diseases, not just one. sick. For the pharmaceutical industry, it would be more effective to go this way. Pharmaceuticals will actually prolong life, not just treatment of disease '.

Barzilai recently discovered two candidates for longevity genes. In a follow-up study of the Ashkenazi Jewish lineage of people aged 95 and older, Barzilai and his colleagues showed that the older group tends to carry a genetic variant that changes the way people treat cholesterol. Recently, scientists have sequenced the genes regulating IGF1 and its receptor. They discovered mutations only found in women whose lifespan lasted a century.

While Barzilai is applying a different method to hunt for genes using microchips, he said that each research group expects results from the other group. Having two large studies of genetic basis for good health in old age will allow each research group to confirm the results obtained in the second group of participants. This is also a test of the value of large-scale genetic studies.