Blood Proteins Provide New Insights into Biological Aging and Disease Risk

A recent study from the University of Oxford reveals that proteins carried in the blood can offer significant insights into biological aging and the risk of age-related diseases. This research, published in Nature Medicine, utilized data from over 51,000 participants across three large population studies to develop an advanced biological age clock that outperforms previous models in predicting the risk of premature death and various diseases.

The research team analyzed nearly 3,000 proteins in blood samples from the UK Biobank study to build a machine learning model that uses 204 specific proteins to estimate a person’s biological age. This model was then validated in two other population studies— the China Kadoorie Biobank and FinnGen—showing its robustness across diverse genetic backgrounds and lifestyles.

Key findings from the study include:

• A variation of up to 12 years in biological age among individuals with the same chronological age.
• A correlation between the protein age gap and various health outcomes, including physical frailty, cognitive function, and risk of major diseases such as dementia, heart disease, and cancer.
• The ability of the protein-based biological age clock to identify key biological pathways involved in aging and multimorbidity, offering potential for future health interventions.

This study, led by Professor Cornelia van Duijn of Oxford Population Health, may represent the most comprehensive evidence to date linking biological age to a wide range of age-related diseases and mortality. The findings suggest that the protein age gap could serve as a powerful tool in predicting health risks, guiding preventative health strategies, and informing precision medicine approaches to extend healthy lifespan.

See also: The Aging Research Is On The Rise

As technology advances and the cost of proteomic analysis decreases, this protein-based age clock may soon be used in clinical settings to monitor individual aging processes, evaluate the effectiveness of lifestyle interventions, and potentially reduce the burden of aging-related diseases on global health services.

Topics: Aging & Longevity