Centenarians have a different population of intestinal viruses (the so-called virome) than other people. These viruses, interacting with the population of bacteria present in the intestine (microbiome), could play an important role in longevity. This is what the study coordinated by the Broad Institute of Cambridge and published in the journal Nature Microbiology suggests. “Because centenarians represent a surprisingly robust population, with lower susceptibility to age-related diseases and infections than people decades younger, the key to their longevity remains a topic of interest,” write the researchers, who studied the virome of 195 centenarians identified in Japan and Sardinia.
The search for Cambridge
The research team found that these people had an extraordinary variety of viral populations, much richer than that found in young adults and those over 60. “We found that the viroma human intestinal mole centenary represents a rich and diverse community with unique viral populations interacting with numerous bacterial species identified in centenarians,” the researchers explain. Specifically, the researchers identified more than 4,400 different groups of viruses. Of these, about 1,700 had never been previously described. According to the researchers, these viral populations could help maintain the integrity of the intestinal mucosa, protect against pathogenic organisms and, in collaboration with the bacteria of the microbiome, have beneficial effects on both the immune system and metabolism, promoting healthy aging and longevity.
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