We are all ultimately overtaken by age, yet for some people, the correct
genes can make the journey into old age rather slow.
Italian researchers made a
unique discovery
regarding people who survive well into their 90s and beyond a few years ago:
they frequently possess a variant of the gene BPIFB4 that guards against
cardiovascular disease and maintains the heart in excellent condition for a
longer period of time.
The scientists have now seen how the variation reverses signs of biological
heart aging by the equivalent of more than 10 human years by implanting the
mutant gene into older mice.
The identical treatment was demonstrated to stop cardiac function
deterioration in middle-aged animals.
Numerous factors, including as how much we drink and whether or not we
smoke, affect how rapidly the heart and its surrounding blood arteries
normally deteriorate. According to the study's findings, protein-encoding
gene mutations also play a significant role.
The BPIFB4 gene's longevity-associated variation (LAV), which the
researchers examined, is
already linked
to human lifespan and is regularly discovered in people who live longer than
average,
including those who are in their late 90s and beyond. The discovery led the researchers to
focus on the physiological ramifications of the variation.
In addition to the studies on mice, the scientists also introduced the gene
to human heart cells in a lab to see the results. 24 elderly individuals
with significant cardiac conditions, some of whom had already undergone
heart transplants, had their cells removed.
The findings indicated that LAV-BPIFB4 is crucial for sustaining
pericyte cells. These cells' functions include creating new blood arteries and
maintaining them, which maintains the heart healthy for longer.
According to Monica Cattaneo, a cardiovascular researcher from the IRCCS Multimedica Group in Italy and
the study's primary author, pericytes, which assist the growth of new blood
vessels, were found to be less functional and older in the elderly
individuals.
"By introducing the longevity gene/protein into the test tube, we witnessed
a process of cardiac rejuvenation: the cardiac cells of old heart failure
patients had reestablished normal function, demonstrating to be more
effective in forming new blood vessels."
The BPIFB4 gene mutation is passed down naturally from centenarians to
their offspring, but it may also be used as a treatment for persons with
cardiac problems whose parents did not live to a ripe old age.
The BPIFB4 gene has
previously been demonstrated
to prevent diabetes, atherosclerosis, and other problems in mice, and future
clinical studies may be utilized to determine whether similar preventative
benefits occur in people.
The BPIFB4 protein itself, as opposed to the BPIFB4 gene that produces it,
may one day be used as a therapeutic, according to the researchers. Both
techniques are feasible, but administering proteins is simpler and
safer.
According to Madeddu, "Our results show the healthy mutant gene can restore the deterioration
of cardiac function in older persons." We are now interested in figuring out
whether administering the protein instead of the gene can also be
effective.
The research has been published in
Cardiovascular Research.
