In addition to being fortunate enough to avoid life’s accidents, an extremely important factor for longevity is the unusual combination of mutated genes that protect the body against diseases related to aging.
This unique genetic mystery has helped restart the body’s biochemical mechanism, giving certain individuals the ability to live longer than normal.
The aforementioned discovery by expert A. Kunkel, Director of the Genetics Program at Boston Medical Center, and Thomas T. Perls, a veteran geriatrician at Boston University, is a new effort to decode the secrets of longevity.
As part of the project researching centenarians, Mr. A. Kunkel and his colleagues identified several special genes among siblings in the United Kingdom. Expert Kunkel believes that those who possess this rare genetic combination tend to age more slowly. By the age of 90, they do not appear significantly older than those who are 70…
According to Professor – Dr. Perls, centenarians have a “special exception” regarding longevity. During the research process, he found that many of those who live to be a hundred have siblings or close relatives. Notably, there is a case of a 108-year-old woman with a 102-year-old sister and two other siblings aged 103 and 99 years. “This suggests that these families may carry special protective genes.”
Immediately after these two scientists met, a collaborative research project on longevity was launched. Experts Kunkel and Professor Perls sought additional subjects over 100 years old through students, the press, and census lists. After collecting blood samples from these individuals, the researchers extracted DNA samples and began searching for genetic secrets, focusing mainly on unusual DNA characteristics.
After analyzing and comparing these samples with those of normal individuals, they discovered that human longevity is truly complex, influenced by several genes. In a recent issue of the journal Mechanisms of Ageing and Development from the University of Washington, the authors wrote: “There are too many interacting mechanisms leading to aging, while the genes that control human longevity are too faint, making them difficult to detect. Unlike extending life in lower organisms like roundworms, fruit flies, and vinegar flies, which require only the alteration of certain genes, we feel that only a very small number of genes, around 4 to 6, in humans may have similar effects in supporting lifespan extension.”
Currently, researchers are focusing on the genetic mechanisms that produce this gene within the genomes of 308 people, including 137 siblings living over 100 years. “The ray of hope lies at the end of chromosome pair 4, and we have discovered an unusual correlation in this area with longevity,” Perls stated.
In another study, hundreds of centenarians around the world provided blood samples and health history data for research into special genes. Scientists hope that this important source of information and data will reveal valuable clues about longevity, and further, may lead to the possibility of creating a drug that allows humans to realize the dream of “aging gracefully.”
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