Scientists showed in a new study how two blood proteins influence the length and health of the lives people live.
As specified in a EurekAlert! report, the largest genetic study of aging indicates that developing drugs that target such proteins could be one way of delaying the aging process.
As a person gets older, his body begins to decline after he reaches adulthood, which leads to age-related illnesses and, eventually, death. A New study examines which proteins could affect the aging process.
A lot of multifaceted and related factors identify the rate at which people age and die, and these include lifestyle, environment, chance, and genetics. The research sheds light on the part proteins play in this process.
Low Protein Levels Affect Human Health
Some people have naturally higher or lower levels of some proteins due to the DNA they inherit from their parents. In turn, such protein levels can impact the health of a person.
Researchers at the University of Edinburgh collected the results of six large genetic studies and combined them into human aging, each having genetic information on hundreds of thousands of individuals.
Among the more than 850 proteins examined, researchers were able to identify two that had substantial adverse effects across different aging measures.
People who inherited DNA that leads to increased levels of the said proteins were found frailer, had poorer self-related health, and were less likely to live a remarkably long life compared to those who did not.
The 2 Proteins Identified
Apolipoprotein(a) (LPA), the first protein, is made in the liver and believed to play a vital role in clotting. Higher LPA levels can increase the danger of atherosclerosis, a condition in which arteries turn clogged with fatty substances. Possible results of this occurrence are stroke and heart disease.
Vascular cell adhesion molecule 1 (VCAM1), the second protein, is mainly found on the endothelial cell' surfaces. It is a one-cell layer lining the blood vessels, a similar Medical Xpress specified.
Essentially, the protein controls the expansion and retraction of vessels, the function of blood clotting, and the immune response.
The VCAM1 levels increase when the body sends signals to indicate it has identified an infection. Then, VCAM1 enables immune cells to cross the endothelial layer, as seen for those who have naturally low levels of such proteins.
The Power of Modern Genetics Exhibited
According to the researchers, drugs used for the treatment of diseases by lowering the LPA and VCAM1 levels could have the added benefit of enhancing both quality and length of life.
One such instance is a clinical trial that tests a drug to decrease LPA as a way of lowering the risk of a heart ailment. Currently, there are no clinical trials that involve VCAM1, although studies in mice have revealed how antibodies lower this level of protein-enhanced cognition during old age.
Lead researcher Dr. Paul Timmers from the MRC Human Genetics Unit at the University of Edinburgh explained the identification of the two proteins could help prolong "the healthy years of life."
He added that drugs that decrease such protein levels in the blood could enable the average person to live "as healthy and as long" as those who have won the genetic lottery and people who are born with genetically low levels of LPA and VCAM1.
Commenting on the findings published in the Nature Aging journal, the Chair of Human Genetics at the University of Edinburgh's Usher Institute, Professor Jim Wilson, said this research exhibits the power of modern genetics to determine two potential targets for future drugs to prolong lifespan.
Related information about delaying aging and extending human lifespan is shown on Veritasium's YouTube video below:
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