A new tool called CheekAge has been developed that can predict mortality risk by analyzing epigenetic changes in cheek cells. This tool can accurately assess mortality risk, outperforming earlier models based on blood samples, and offers a new method of monitoring biological aging. The rate of aging varies widely among individuals due to genetics and lifestyle choices. While some supercentenarians may age more slowly due to favorable genetics, lifestyle factors such as stress, poor sleep, poor nutrition, smoking, and alcohol can accelerate aging. Epigenetic changes in the genome can be used to measure molecular aging by examining specific genomic sites.
Epigenetics is a branch of genetics that studies how gene activity can be changed without altering the DNA sequence itself. The environment, lifestyle, and experiences can influence which genes are turned “on” or “off”. Over the last decade, tools known as “epigenetic clocks” have been created to estimate biological age by analyzing DNA methylation patterns. CheekAge is a second-generation epigenetic clock that uses methylation data from easily collected cheek cells. Researchers have found that CheekAge can accurately predict mortality risk, even when data from other tissues is used, suggesting that it can pick up important health signals across tissues.
CheekAge was developed by analyzing methylation levels at around 200,000 sites and linking them to an overall health and lifestyle score. Statistical programming was used to evaluate how accurately CheekAge predicted mortality in a cohort of individuals who were tracked throughout their lives as part of the Lothian Birth Cohorts program. It was found that CheekAge was significantly associated with mortality in a longitudinal dataset and outperformed first-generation clocks trained with blood data. For every increase by a single standard deviation in CheekAge, the hazard ratio of all-cause mortality increased by 21%, indicating a strong association with mortality risk.
Specific genes located around the methylation sites most strongly linked to mortality were identified as potential markers of aging. Some of these genes have been associated with cancer, heart health, inflammation, and metabolic syndrome. CheekAge could be used to predict not only mortality risk but also the incidence of age-related diseases and the length of a person’s healthspan. Future research could explore the associations CheekAge might capture beyond all-cause mortality. The study showed that using cheek cells to predict aging and related health issues could be a promising method that is less invasive than traditional blood tests.
It is suggested that CheekAge could lead to more personalized and proactive preventive healthcare, allowing for the management of the aging process early with tailored health strategies. Making this technology widely accessible could lead to more equitable health practices and a better quality of life as people age. However, more research is needed to definitively make any conclusions and validate the use of CheekAge as an aging biomarker. While the test has yet to be validated by the FDA, further studies associating CheekAge with other important health and lifestyle factors are planned. CheekAge has the potential to be used for academic research, clinical trials, and as a health tracking tool in the future.
