A new study found that people with a particular gene variant, in the gene CETP, may survive the longest. CETP, cholesteryl ester transfer protein, is located on chromosome 16. It is a plasma protein that facilitates the transfer of cholesteryl ester from high density lipoprotein (HDL) to other lipoproteins. HDL is known as the "good" kind of cholesterol, and an increase in the blood levels of HDL is caused by the favorable variant of the CETP gene.
For a long time, researchers knew that people with this gene variant have a better chance at living longer than 95, and sometimes even 100, years. A new study, presented by Dr. Sofiya Milman, shows that when comparing elderly people above the age of 95, the people with the advantageous variant of the CETP gene outlive the other elderly people. This study expands on the work began at Einstein College of Medicine in New York City in the 1990s. When describing the centenarians she has studied, Milman says, "They don't only live longer, they live healthier too."
Before conducting the study Milman was aware that the CETP variant was found to be related to decreased rates of heart disease and strokes and sharper mental function. Milman conducted the study by gathering 400 ninety-seven year old New York residents and following them for about one to eleven years. The researchers found evidence confirming that people with the favorable CETP variant and higher HDL levels lived longer.
CETP and HDL are not the only keys to a long life. Exercise, healthy eating, and adequate sleep are still some very important aspects to a long and healthy life. Understanding CETP, HDL, and other "longevity" genes are still important and may open many doors in the research world. "Down the road, it might be possible to develop therapies that mimic these genes' effects," Milman believes.
This article stood out to me because the subject of long life is really interesting to me. As a child, I always believed that researchers would eventually invent a "magic potion" that caused everybody to live forever. Hearing there is a gene that effects one's life span and that drug companies have already started working on CETP inhibitors, makes my childhood assumption sound closer than ever. Now that I think about everybody living forever, it might not actually be a good thing. Overpopulation would be an extreme concern and resources would diminish even quicker. This article is still very fascinating and makes me wonder if I could possibly have the favorable CETP variant.
Related Article: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100112165234.htm
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