Epidemiologists develop advanced state-of-the-art tool for measuring the
pace of aging
DunedinPACE reveals wide range of population aging rates and can predict future disease and mortality
Date:
January 18, 2022
Source:
Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health
Summary:
Researchers developed a new blood test to measure the pace of
biological aging. Based on an analysis of chemical tags on the
DNA contained in white blood cells, called DNA methylation marks,
the new test is named DunedinPACE (Pace of Aging Computed from the
Epigenome). DunedinPACE is a new addition to a fast-growing list
of DNA methylation tests designed to measure aging and contributes
value-added over and above the current state of the art.
FULL STORY ========================================================================== Researchers at Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health have developed a new blood test to measure the pace of biological aging. Based
on an analysis of chemical tags on the DNA contained in white blood
cells, called DNA methylation marks, the new test is named DunedinPACE,
after the Dunedin Birth Cohort used to develop it. DunedinPACE (stands
for Pace of Aging Computed from the Epigenome) is a new addition to a fast-growing list of DNA methylation tests designed to measure aging and contributes value-added over and above the current state of the art. The findings are published online in the journal e- Life.
========================================================================== "What makes DunedinPACE unique is that, whereas other tests aim to measure
how old or young a person is, DunedinPACE measures whether you are aging quickly or slowly," said Daniel Belsky, PhD, assistant professor of epidemiology at Columbia Mailman School and a researcher at the Columbia
Aging Center. This design could make DunedinPACE more a more sensitive
tool to detect effects of interventions that aim to slow aging or of
exposures that accelerate aging processes. "Whereas other measures of
aging are designed to capture all aging- related change accumulated
across the life course, our measure is focused on changes occurring
over the recent past," explained Belsky. "What is striking is that, even
with this more restricted focus, DunedinPACE is equally precise as the
best of the currently available tests in predicting disease, disability,
and mortality in the future, and it adds value to risk assessments over
and above these measures." Developed by Belsky and colleagues at Duke University and the University of Otago, DunedinPACE tracks changes in
19 biomarkers of organ-system integrity in the 1000-member Dunedin Study
birth cohort, who were first enrolled in the study at birth in 1972-1973
and have been followed up ever since, most recently at the time of their
45th birthday. This study used data collected from the participants when
they were all aged 26, 32, 38, and 45 years.
The use a single-year birth cohort to develop the measure ensures
DunedinPACE is not contaminated by biases that may affect studies that
compare older to younger people, including survival bias, historical differences in exposure.
The analysis of changes that occurred within Study members' bodies
as they aged over the 20-year follow-up also ensures that DunedinPACE
measures aging-related changes occurring during adult life.
In addition to the Dunedin Study, the researchers also used data from the Understanding Society Study, the Normative Aging Study, the Framingham
Heart Study, and the Environmental Risk (E- Risk) Longitudinal Twin Study.
In the current analysis, midlife and older adults with faster DunedinPACE
were at increased risk for incident chronic disease, disability, and
mortality; across the lifespan, DunedinPACE was correlated with measures
of biological age derived from blood chemistry and DNA methylation data,
and with research participants' subjective perceptions of their own
health. It also indicated faster Pace of Aging in young adults with
histories of exposure to poverty and victimization.
"In sum, DunedinPACE represents a novel measure of aging that can
complement existing DNA methylation measures of aging to help advance
the frontiers of geroscience," noted Belsky, who is also with the Robert
N. Butler Columbia Aging Center, Columbia Mailman School.
The current analysis establishes DunedinPACE as a novel single-time-point measure that quantifies Pace of Aging with whole blood samples, that
can be readily implemented in most DNA methylation datasets, making it immediately available for testing in a wide range of existing datasets
as a complement to existing methylation measures of aging.
"There is growing interest in technologies to measure a biological age,
defined as how much older or younger a person is biologically than their birthdate would predict. Our study reveals that it is also possible to
measure Pace of Aging, or how fast a person's body is declining. Together, these measurements can help us understand the factors that drive
accelerated aging in at-risk populations and identify interventions that
can slow aging to build aging health equity." Co-authors are A Caspi,
TE Moffitt, King's College, UK and Duke University; K Sugden, K Chamarti,
HL Harrington, R Houts, B Williams, Duke University; R Poulton, University
of Otago, NZ; L Arseneault, King's College, UK; A.
Baccarelli, Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health; X Gao,
Peking University; E Hannon, J Mill, University of Exeter, UK; M Kothari,
D Kwon, Robert N. Butler Columbia Aging Center, Columbia Mailman School
of Public Health; J Schwartz, C Wang, Harvard TH Chan School of Public
Health; and P Vokonas, Veterans Affairs Boston Healthcare System, Boston University School of Medicine The research was supported by National
Institute on Aging (grants AG032282,AG061378,AG066887); Medical Research Council (grant P005918).
========================================================================== Story Source: Materials provided by Columbia_University's_Mailman_School_of_Public_Health.
Note: Content may be edited for style and length.
========================================================================== Journal Reference:
1. Daniel W Belsky, Avshalom Caspi, David L Corcoran, Karen Sugden,
Richie
Poulton, Louise Arseneault, Andrea Baccarelli, Kartik Chamarti,
Xu Gao, Eilis Hannon, Hona Lee Harrington, Renate Houts, Meeraj
Kothari, Dayoon Kwon, Jonathan Mill, Joel Schwartz, Pantel Vokonas,
Cuicui Wang, Benjamin S Williams, Terrie E Moffitt. DunedinPACE,
a DNA methylation biomarker of the pace of aging. eLife, 2022;
11 DOI: 10.7554/eLife.73420 ==========================================================================
Link to news story:
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/01/220118103713.htm
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