From Life to Lab: Many Brazilians Pass 110: Why?

From Life to Lab: Many Brazilians Pass 110: Why?

By Shlomo Maital

Centenarian Source Depositphotos.com

A study published on January 6 in Genomic Psychiatry examines the mystery of Brazil’s supercentenarians:  Those who live to 110 and even past.  The study is by Dr. Mayana Zatz and her colleagues at Sao Paulo University.  They note how Brazil’s highly diverse population, genetically, harbors millions of genetic variants missing “from standard datasets”.

“Many [supercentenarians] spent most of their lives in underserved areas with little access to modern healthcare”.  One family under study, a 110-year-old woman, has nieces aged 100, 104, and 106! Three of the longest-lived Brazilian supercentenarians survived COVID infection long before vaccines were available.

What is their secret?

“Preserved immune function, intact protein maintenance systems, and overall physiological stability together.”

Translation: Their immune systems continue to work as well as they did when they were younger. The systems that generate and maintain key proteins continue to work well. And overall, their physiology is stable. 

Good genes. Good immune systems. Good proteins.

Does this mean we are powerless in the face of the genes we inherit, regarding longevity? Not at all. Help your immune system out. Keep fit, keep active, keep happy, avoid depression —  refrain from signaling your brain that you are tired of living and want it to keep on working hard to protect the body against invaders.