Genes that help you live to 100

摘要

Fancy living for a century? Your luck may be in if you carry protective variants of four newly discovered genes. One gene determines blood group, another helps regulate cellular life cycles, while the third is involved in how the immune system recognises the body's own cells. The fourth has been shown to extend lifespan in fruit flies. Uncovered by searching the genomes of centenarians, the genes join APOE, which is known to influence Alzheimer's risk, as the bits of our genome most clearly associated with lifespan. They are tantalising clues to uncovering the mystery of why we age, and could help us prevent age-related diseases.