Aging and Chronic Diseases Share Genetic Factors, Study Reveals

A study published in Communications Biology determined the most prevalent chronic diseases like cancer, diabetes, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, stroke, and dementia apparently have aging in common, reports Medical Xpress . "By analyzing the dynamics of disease incidence in the clinical data available from UK Biobank, we observed that the risks of age-related diseases grow exponentially with age and double at a rate compatible with the Gompertz mortality law," says Gero founder Peter Fedichev. "This close relation between the most prevalent chronic diseases and mortality suggests that their risks could be driven by the same process ... aging. This is why healthspan can be used as a natural proxy for investigation of the genetic factors controlling the rate of aging, the 'holy grail' target for anti-aging interventions." The researchers studied the genomes of 300,477 Britons, and found 12 genetic loci affecting healthy life expectancy. Eleven of the 12 single-nucleotide polymorphisms elevated the risk both in discovery and in replication groups. Three of the genes affecting healthspan, HLA-DBQ, LPA, and CDKN2B, were previously associated with parental longevity. A minimum of three genetic loci were linked to the risk of multiple diseases and healthspan concurrently, and thus could form the genetic signature of aging.