It was my sister that got me to take the Ancestry DNA test, after she took it herself. It was that test that revealed a family secret that my mother had taken to the grave with her. We both later took the 23&Me DNA test in order to see if we could find more relatives who, perhaps, took that test rather than the Ancestry test. It was an effort to cast a wider net for more data, in order to try to answer some of the questions that this family research had raised.
About two months ago, my sister told me she had taken yet another genetic test, but not one designed to study ancestry. Instead, its purpose is to study longevity. The test is made available by a company called Teloyears, and the test measures the part of your chromosomes called telomeres. What does this have to do with aging? Follow me over the fold to find out…
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The telomeres are at the very ends of your chromosomes. They contain no genetic information. They consist of many, many repeats of a short sequence of DNA (5 base pairs). The purpose of the telomeres is to protect the the actual genetic information in the chromosome held beyond the telomere. The reason for this is that it is never possible to copy the entire sequence of the DNA—a little bit is going to be lost at the ends each time it’s copied. The telomeres exist to be sacrificed to the process of copying the chromosome. Because they contain no information, it doesn’t matter to the functioning of the chromosomes if some of telomeres are lost. And, of course, as time goes by, and copies are made from copies, the telomeres get progressively shorter.
Thus, it is possible to correlate telomere length with age; the shorter the telomeres, the older the organism (though there are exceptions). However, telomere length does not correlate just to age; it also correlates to your health status, and how well you’ve been taking care of yourself. If you eat healthy food and do regular moderate exercise, your telomeres will be longer than someone else the same age as you who doesn’t eat well and doesn’t exercise. The length of your telomeres can provide a “genetic age” that may be either younger or older than your chronological age.
My sister did this test first. She is 61. Her genetic age, based on the length of her telomeres, was 41! I’ll admit she’s in very good shape for a woman her age. She’s a devotee of hot yoga, and she thinks that has something to do with her genetic youth.
She offered me a coupon as a discount for a test, so I did it too. (By the way, rather than spitting in a vial, as one does for a standard DNA test, you have to provide blood for this one.) I got the results a couple days ago. My chronological age is 57, a month away from being 58. According to my results, my genetic age is 52. I was, of course, crestfallen that my sister had managed to beat me in the genetic youth category by 15 years. Apparently, I’m genetically “older” than my older sister!
Further, according to my results, I’m in the 62nd percentile among men, meaning that I scored better than 62 % of men my age. The results come with a long brochure on what lifestyle changes you need to make to keep your telomeres long. (I can see the new pick-up line now: Hey, baby, you won’t believe how long my telomeres are!)
It’s apparent that Teloyears intends for people to retake this test periodically in order to see how their lifestyle changes are affecting their telomere length. With a genetic age 5 years younger than my chronological age, I don’t think I’m doing that badly, so I probably won’t be making many adjustments. I will say I think I’ve had enough with the genetic tests for a while, though.
So how are your telomeres tonight?
Now, on to the comments!
Top Comments (July 28, 2017):
From edrie:
In Walter Einenkel’s recommended post regarding Scaramucci’s wife filing for divorce today, Dauphin has made an astute observation! best laugh all day!
That sound you hear is pepper spray sales in DC skyrocketing.
Highlighted by xgz:
This comment by dopper0189 from Mark Sumner’s front page post Republicans fail to repeal Obamacare as Senate drama reaches fever pitch..
Highlighted by dcnblues:
This comment by Jacoby Jonze from Mark Sumner’s front page post Wanted: Chief of staff, apply at White House.
Highlighted by JoanMar:
This comment by vacantlook from Jen Hayden’s recommended post This video of Trump ignoring a disabled child repeatedly trying to shake his hand is heartbreaking.
Highlighted by DoctorWho:
This comment by boran2 in Laura Clawson’s front page post Trump throws Reince under the Prie-bus with a Friday afternoon firing.
Highlighted by G2geek:
This comment by dcnblues in Walter Einenkel’s recommended post on Scaramucci’s divorce.
Top Mojo (July 27, 2017):
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Top Photos (July 27, 2017):
Tonight’s picture quilt is courtesy of jotter!