Researchers identify gene linked to longevity

Researchers investigating long-lived men have discovered a gene that appears to have a “strong and highly significant” link to longevity.

Bradley Willcox, MD, and colleagues at the Kuakini Medical Centre, Honolulu, and colleagues in Japan, made the discovery whilst analyzing data from the Hawaii Lifespan Study. The researchers looked at health data collected during 1991 and 1993. In 2007, the researchers followed-up the men and obtained new data from those that were still alive. They then put the men into two groups. The first group of “average-lived” men consisted of those who had died before they reached 81-years-old. The second group of “longevity cases” consisted of men who were still alive and were at least 95-years-old.

Results of the genetic research showed that men who reported better health back in the 1990's had similarities on a gene known as FOX03A, which has effects upon the insulin/IGF-1 signaling (IIS) pathway. The same similarities were also noted in the participants that were still alive 2007. In fact, men with one copy of the FOX03A GG genotype had double the odds of living for at least 95-years, whilst those with two copies of the gene were nearly three times as likely to live to reach their 95th birthday. The study also found that the long-lived men had a lower waist-to-hip ratio, lower triglyceride levels, and lower glucose and insulin levels.

Willcox BJ, Donlon TA, He Q, Chen R, Grove JS, Yano K, Masaki KH, Willcox DC, Rodriguez B, Curb JD. FOXO3A genotype is strongly associated with human longevity. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2008 Sep 2. [Epub ahead of print] doi:10.1073/pnas.0801030105.