by Chicago – Medical researchers in Chicago study the difference between the chronological age of a person – how many years they have lived – and their biological age, how old their bodies actually is.
“We are in a place where the biology of aging is demystified,” says Dr. Douglas Vaughan, director of the Potocsnak Longevity Institute at the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago, and the head of the study. “… If we can slow down, a little bit, we can reduce the start of the disease and we can give people a longer health span.”
The basis of Vaughan’s research came from a small Amish community in Indiana, where he discovered that a genetic variation in about 10% of the population enables them to live on average a decade longer than in their community.
“They can teach us a lot about what is needed to find healthy aging,” said Vaughan.
That work has evolved into an international study of aging Vaughan leads to the Longevity Institute.
“As you get older, you want to know, I stay sharp,” said Vaughan.
The Longevity Institute was founded in 2022. Study participants undergo a one-off visit that lasts approximately 60 minutes to 3 hours, with follow-ups to give updates about their health condition.
“Being able to be a representative of the minority community is really important because I want to know, how does this information measure people like me?” Study participant Kalinda Marshall said.
The researchers use a series of tests to calculate the biological age, including a scan of the retina and an analysis of the physical movement of the participants.
They also measure the body mass in a machine called a bid pod. They do an electrocardiogram for heart function. They then use artificial intelligence to search the mountain of data to come up with a number for the organic era of a participant.
“Artificial intelligence gives us the opportunity to find patterns in the data that we cannot find with our eyes that we cannot detect with a human brain,” said Dr. Josh Cheema, a cardiologist with north -western medicine involved in the project.
The work has a special focus on people in marginalized communities and people who live with long -term medical problems.
“We are really interested in discovering ways to delay aging in people who are disadvantaged,” said Vaughan.
A network of similar laboratories that conduct the same research on three other continents is in the making and there are already signs of progress. In tests, pills that mimic the genetic variation that Amish live longer, did the same for mice.
Vaughan says: “So, theoretically, we could bring this Amish benefit to everyone.”
Charlie de Mar
