Healthy aging turned out to be more individualized than previously thought

It turned out that the participants exhibited very different, and sometimes even opposite, changes in their molecular profiles. This was the main conclusion: there is no single aging scenario that applies to everyone. Genetic variants and environmental factors continuously interact throughout life, shaping an individual’s trajectory.

For example, in people with a variant of the CXCL9 gene associated with heart aging, the dynamics of molecular changes differed. In some participants, the level of the protein encoded by the tumor suppressor gene TP53 decreased with age, and this potentially alters the risk of developing cancer. Differences were also found in the immune system: molecular changes occurred over time in different ways in cells of the innate and adaptive immune systems. The innate immune system is the rapid first line of defense that a person is born with, while the adaptive immune system is a slower response that forms immune memory.

Researchers also found a correlation between the levels of so‑called “forever chemicals” (PFAS — per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances) in the blood and the dynamics of molecular profiles. This shows that public health measures aimed at reducing environmental risks can actually affect molecular processes in the body.

According to Dr. Julia El‑Sayed Mustafa, the study opens up the possibility of much more personalized approaches to predicting disease risk and maintaining health as people age. Professor Kerrin Small adds that aging at the molecular level appears to be a dynamic and environment‑dependent process. Understanding individual trajectories over time will help distinguish healthy aging from the earliest stages of disease and will make it possible to implement targeted interventions. Essentially, this work could lay the foundation for precision medicine in the context of age‑related changes.