We assembled a collection of 28,297 participants from 7 studies of longevity and healthy aging comprising New England Centenarian, Long Life Family, Longevity Gene Population, Southern Italian Centenarian, Japanese Centenarian, the Danish Longevity and the Health and Retirement Studies to investigate the association between the APOE alleles ɛ2, ɛ3 and ɛ4 and extreme human longevity and age at death. By using 3 different genetic models and two definitions of extreme longevity based on either a threshold model or age at death, we show that ɛ4 is associated with a substantially decreased odds for extreme longevity, and increased risk for death that persists even beyond ages reached by less than 1% of the population. We also show that carrying the ɛ2ɛ3 or ɛ2ɛ3 genotype is associated with significantly increased odds to reach extreme longevity, with decreased risk for death compared to carrying the genotype ɛ2ɛ3 but with only a modest reduction in risk for death beyond an age reached by less than 1% of the population.
The search for the genetic determinants of extreme human longevity has been challenged by the phenotype's rarity and its nonspecific definition by investigators. To address these issues, we established a consortium of four studies of extreme longevity that contributed 2,070 individuals who survived to the oldest one percentile of survival for the 1900 U.S. birth year cohort. We conducted various analyses to discover longevity-associated variants (LAV) and characterized those LAVs that differentiate survival to extreme age at death (eSAVs) from those LAVs that become more frequent in centenarians because of mortality selection (eg, survival to younger years). The analyses identified new rare variants in chromosomes 4 and 7 associated with extreme survival and with reduced risk for cardiovascular disease and Alzheimer's disease. The results confirm the importance of studying truly rare survival to discover those combinations of common and rare variants associated with extreme longevity and longer health span.
Using samples from the New England Centenarian Study (NECS), we sought to characterize the serum proteome of 77 centenarians, 82 centenarians' offspring, and 65 age‐matched controls of the offspring (mean ages: 105, 80, and 79 years). We identified 1312 proteins that significantly differ between centenarians and their offspring and controls (FDR < 1%), and two different protein signatures that predict longer survival in centenarians and in younger people. By comparing the centenarian signature with 2 independent proteomic studies of aging, we replicated the association of 484 proteins of aging and we identified two serum protein signatures that are specific of extreme old age. The data suggest that centenarians acquire similar aging signatures as seen in younger cohorts that have short survival periods, suggesting that they do not escape normal aging markers, but rather acquire them much later than usual. For example, centenarian signatures are significantly enriched for senescence‐associated secretory phenotypes, consistent with those seen with younger aged individuals, and from this finding, we provide a new list of serum proteins that can be used to measure cellular senescence. Protein co‐expression network analysis suggests that a small number of biological drivers may regulate aging and extreme longevity, and that changes in gene regulation may be important to reach extreme old age. This centenarian study thus provides additional signatures that can be used to measure aging and provides specific circulating biomarkers of healthy aging and longevity, suggesting potential mechanisms that could help prolong health and support longevity.
Key Points Question Are there sex differences in genetic associations with longevity? Findings In this case-control study of 2178 cases and 2299 controls who were Chinese with Han ethnicity, sex-specific genome-wide association study and sex-specific polygenic risk score analyses on longevity showed substantial and significant differences in genetic associations with longevity between men and women. Findings indicated that previously published genome-wide association studies on longevity identified some sex-independent genetic variants but missed sex-specific longevity loci and pathways. Meaning These novel findings contribute to filling the gaps in the research literature, and further investigations may substantially contribute to individualized health care and more effective and targeted health interventions for male and female elderly individuals.
The discovery of treatments to prevent or delay dementia and Alzheimer's disease is a priority. The gene APOE is associated with cognitive change and late‐onset Alzheimer's disease, and epidemiological studies have provided strong evidence that the e 2 allele of APOE has a neuroprotective effect, it is associated with increased longevity and an extended healthy lifespan in centenarians. In this study, we correlated APOE genotype data of 222 participants of the New England Centenarian Study, including 75 centenarians, 82 centenarian offspring, and 65 controls, comprising 55 carriers of APOE e 2, with aptamer‐based serum proteomics (SomaLogic technology) of 4,785 human proteins corresponding to 4,137 genes. We discovered a signature of 16 proteins that associated with different APOE genotypes and replicated the signature in three independent studies. We also show that the protein signature tracks with gene expression profiles in brains of late‐onset Alzheimer's disease versus healthy controls. Finally, we show that seven of these proteins correlate with cognitive function patterns in longitudinally collected data. This analysis in particular suggests that Baculoviral IAP repeat containing two (BIRC2) is a novel biomarker of neuroprotection that associates with the neuroprotective allele of APOE. Therefore, targeting APOE e 2 molecularly may preserve cognitive function.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
hi@scite.ai
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.