Researchers: "We found the gene that causes longevity" (update)

Size does matter, at least when it comes to longevity: researchers found in a group of elderly people aged 100 and over, a mutation that creates large particles of the good cholesterol, which protect against many diseases and lead to a long life span. The next step: developing a drug that will increase cholesterol particles, which will lead to life

Life Expectancy

Researchers have known for a long time that in yeast and worm species there is a gene that directly affects life span: removing the gene shortens life span and its multiple copies and overexpression prolong it. Now researchers are moving to the next step and focusing on mice. One of these studies was recently published in the journal Science and it shows that the Sir2 gene does its job by controlling a group of proteins called FOXO. These proteins are transcription factors (responsible for encouraging the DNA copying process) which have long been known to have an effect on life expectancy, since they are involved in controlling the initiated process of cell death (apoptosis), the resistance of the cell to oxidative stress and the resistance of the genetic load to chemicals dangerous. The researchers found that under oxidative stress, Sir2 increased the activity of the FOXO protein as an antioxidant, and at the same time prevented its activity in the apoptosis process.

Researchers: "We found the gene that causes longevity"
17/10/2003
Avi Blizovsky
A gene that affects the size of cholesterol molecules may help people live to the age of 100 or more - so claim researchers from the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York. The research carried out on Ashkenazi men and women reveals that the molecules may protect against heart disease, stroke, diabetes and others.

According to the researchers, the genetic predisposition may be inherited, a fact that will lead to further strengthening of the theory that longevity depends on the inheritance of the "right genes". For the purpose of the study, Eastern European Jews were chosen, due to the social isolation in which they were found. This isolation has led to genetic similarity that helps with a higher level of precision in research.

213 adults participated in the study, whose average age was 98. About half of them were over 100. At the same time, the researchers also examined 216 of their older children. The researchers found in the subjects and their children a mutation that modifies an enzyme that is related to the regulation of blood lipids. The mutation in question in the bodies of Ashkenaz families results in the creation of large particles of the "good cholesterol" (HDL) and the "bad cholesterol" (LDL). These, it seems, provide protection against heart disease.

In a study published tonight (Tuesday) in the new issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association, Dr. Nir Barzilai, head of the research team, said that in the bodies of the elderly who are 100 years old and older, it seems that large particles of HDL and LDL do provide Protection that contributes to a long and quality life. However, Barzilai pointed out that additional studies are needed to verify and even explain the new findings.

Doctors do not conduct routine tests that measure HDL cholesterol or LDL cholesterol, except for a few laboratories in the world. Following the publication of the study, experts claimed that if the results are indeed verified, the test may become commonplace, which may lead to the creation of drugs that will make the cholesterol molecules larger and thus prolong life.

Researchers in the USA led by an Israeli: we discovered the "longevity gene"
by Haim Handwerker

Brazilian. The gene was discovered in the blood of the elderly

A study published today (Wednesday) in the USA reveals that among a quarter of a sample population of extremely elderly people there is a mutation of a gene (which the researchers call the "longevity gene"), which reduces cholesterol damage and prevents many diseases resulting from it. The garden was discovered by a group of researchers led by Professor Nir Barzilai, an Israeli who heads the Institute for the Study of Aging at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York. The study is published in the Journal of the American Medical Association.

The gene was discovered in the blood of the elderly during a study conducted among 213 Ashkenazi Jews in the USA aged 107-95, as well as 216 of their children. The group was chosen for its relative genetic homogeneity. The spouses of the children as well as neighbors of the elderly were taken as a control group.

Barzilai and his team found that 80% of the elderly had cholesterol particles ("good" and "bad") that were larger than normal. Among 24.8% of the long-lived elderly population (compared to 8.6% of the population as a whole) a mutation was found that changes the enzyme responsible for regulating the lipid carriers in the blood (lipoproteins). This mutation, the researchers estimate, causes the formation of large cholesterol particles in many of the elderly. In Barzilai's estimation, the large cholesterol particles prevent, among other things, the adhesion of fats to the artery walls, as well as heart disease, hypertension and metabolic syndrome, which usually leads to diabetes and heart disease. And the size of the cholesterol particles may have effects on other organs, such as the brain.

The discovery of a gene usually encourages pharmaceutical companies to develop drugs in its wake. However, according to Barzilai, a drug for cholesterol is already being developed by Pfizer, which causes, among other things, an increase in cholesterol particles. Pfizer developed the drug without knowing about the potential contribution of increasing the particles to prolonging life, and Barzilai was the one who informed the pharmaceutical company about the advantage it might have.

Barzilai, who has been working for five years in research to find the "longevity gene", says that there are probably several more single genes for longevity. According to him, "the gene we found is only found in a quarter of the longevity population, and we are trying to look for additional genes." He himself recently registered a patent for another gene for longevity, but he has not yet published a scientific article on the subject.
Barzilai's research was funded by the US Department of Health, the National Institute on Aging and the Ellison Foundation of Larry Alcione, chairman of Oracle.