Born to age?
Are some people just born to age faster than others? A new study suggests that might be the case.
Nilesh Samani of the University of Leicester in Britain and colleagues analyzed more than 500,000 variations in nearly 3,000 people's genes and found that those with a certain variation near a gene called TERC tended to have shorter "telomeres."
Telomeres are molecular structures at the ends of chromosomes, which carry genes inside cells. Telomeres are often likened to the plastic tips at the ends of shoelaces that keep them from unraveling. Every time a cell divides, the telomeres get a little shorter. The shorter the telomeres, the faster cells are believed to age. They are therefore considered markers for aging.
The new finding indicates that some people are born with genes that make them predisposed to the diseases of aging, essentially making them age more quickly than other people.
In the study, published in the journal Nature Genetics, those with certain variations of the TERC gene had telomeres that appeared to make them biologically about three or four years older than their chronological ages. TERC is involved in the production of telomerase, which helps repair telomeres. It could be that people born with this variation were exposed to lower levels of telomerase in the womb, essentially making them biologically several years older than other people.
Obviously, much more research is needed to confirm and explore the findings. But the researchers say they could lead to new insights into aging and perhaps a way to identify people who are more prone to the diseases of aging. That might lead to doing more to help stave off the decline.
February 10, 2010; 6:00 AM ET
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