Blood tests could soon be used to predict how long someone will live, scientists say.
A particular type of white blood cell is more abundant in people whose parents live to be 100, a study shows.
Researchers hope the cells can be used as a marker for longevity – and perhaps even lead to a way for people to live longer.
It’s well known the children of parents who have a long life are also likely to reach a healthy age, but no one knows why.
White blood cells fend off infection – in effect delaying death – so Dr Sonya Vasto and colleagues investigated longevity by taking samples of white blood cells from 45 men and women aged between 75 and 90 who all had parents born in Sicily between 1900 and 1908.
Twenty-five of the donors had one parent who had reached 100 and one who had died of old age before reaching average life expectancy for Italians – which is 67 for men and 72 for women.
The remaining 20 donors served as controls having lost both parents before they reached average life expectancy, reports New Scientist.
The researchers found the two groups had different numbers of a type of blood cell, called naive B-cells, in their blood.
Dr Vasto, of Palermo University, said: “Our main finding was the increase in naive B-cells in individuals who had centenarian parents.”
Because the results are only preliminary she will not disclose the extent of the increase as yet.
B-cells are vital components of the immune system producing antibodies to combat foreign invaders such as bacteria.
Unlike mature B-cells – which are primed to attack foes the body has seen before – naive B-cells are ready and waiting to attack microbes not previously encountered.
RESOURCE/SOURCE: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/2194078/Blood-tests-‘could-be-used-to-predict-lifespan’.html on Wednesday June 25, 2008.
