Studies of Centenarians Reveal Genetic Secrets of Long Life
Dr. Almut Nebel of the Institute of Clinical Molecular Biology of the University of Kiel explains proudly: “Our collection of DNA samples of very elderly persons constitutes one of the world’s largest biological databases of its kind.” The human geneticist and her colleagues want to find out which genes enable people to attain exceptional old age. Findings of studies on twins indicate that longevity is influenced by genetic factors to about 33 percent. “For example, longevity genes could be genes which regulate the immune system, which repair cell damage or control cell growth,” Almut Nebel says. “Animal experiment results seem to point to this.” To identify the longevity genes, researchers currently are comparing the DNA of their very elderly study participants with the DNA samples of randomly selected test persons aged 60 to 75 years.
Furthermore, the Kiel Institute headed by Professor Stefan Schreiber is part of the European research consortium “Genetics of Healthy Aging” (GEHA). To date, GEHA is the world’s largest project investigating the genetic causes of longevity. One of the projects of GEHA is to collect the DNA samples of 2,800 sibling pairs that are at least 90 years of age throughout Europe. Almut Nebel adds: “The presence of common DNA sequences in the sibling pairs indicates the possible existence of longevity genes. Our institute in Kiel is involved in the selection of the sibling pairs and performs a major part of the work in the genetic analyses.”
Through their research, the gene researchers in Kiel hope to understand the principles of the aging process in the human body. From this they also hope to find new approaches for the treatment of age-related diseases. Almut Nebel says in summary: “Through drug targeting it could be possible, for example, to activate genes for the repair of nerve cells in Parkinson’s disease or to switch off risk genes for arteriosclerosis. We want to make it possible that healthy aging can be accompanied by good quality of life. That is especially important for a society in which more and more elderly people are living.”
Old , older, oldest
When France’s Jeanne Calment died on August 4, 1997 she was then the oldest known person who ever lived whose birth and death dates have been reliably documented. She lived 122 years.
The second oldest person was the American Sarah Knauss (born in 1880, died in 1999 at the age of 119 years).
Since the end of the World War II the number of centenarians in the industrialized nations has continued to rise. From the 1960s on, gerontologists have even noted an increase in the number of supercentenarians, i.e. people who are older than 110 years. In 2001, a total of 20 persons of this “biblical” age were living in Belgium, Denmark, England (including Wales), Finland, France, Japan, Holland, Norway und Sweden.
Better living conditions and healthier nutrition are considered to be the main reasons for this development. To date, no one can say exactly where the ceiling of life expectancy is, – perhaps there is no ceiling.
When France’s Jeanne Calment died on August 4, 1997 she was then the oldest known person who ever lived whose birth and death dates have been reliably documented. She lived 122 years.
The second oldest person was the American Sarah Knauss (born in 1880, died in 1999 at the age of 119 years).
Since the end of the World War II the number of centenarians in the industrialized nations has continued to rise. From the 1960s on, gerontologists have even noted an increase in the number of supercentenarians, i.e. people who are older than 110 years. In 2001, a total of 20 persons of this “biblical” age were living in Belgium, Denmark, England (including Wales), Finland, France, Japan, Holland, Norway und Sweden.
Better living conditions and healthier nutrition are considered to be the main reasons for this development. To date, no one can say exactly where the ceiling of life expectancy is, – perhaps there is no ceiling.
