{"id":2995112,"date":"2023-11-03T16:06:30","date_gmt":"2023-11-03T20:06:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.futurity.org\/?p=2995112"},"modified":"2023-11-06T08:50:22","modified_gmt":"2023-11-06T13:50:22","slug":"age-acceleration-aging-memory-2995112","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.futurity.org\/age-acceleration-aging-memory-2995112\/","title":{"rendered":"‘Age acceleration’ tied to worse memory"},"content":{"rendered":"

New research shows that age acceleration, when your biological clock runs quicker than your actual age, is linked to poorer memory and slower rates of processing information.<\/p>\n

The researchers measured biological “clocks” derived from the DNA of 142 adults aged 25-65 years old and had the participants complete daily cognitive tests on smartphones.<\/p>\n

Their findings imply that epigenetic age acceleration could be a better indicator of how well a person remembers information and how quickly they work with information.<\/p>\n

The research appears in the Journal of Gerontology: Biological 糖心视频s<\/a><\/em>.<\/p>\n

There are well-known chronological age differences in cognitive performance\u2014on average, younger adults tend to remember more information and respond more quickly than older adults. One presumed explanation is biological wear-and-tear across life, but until recently there was not a way to test biological aging to explain these differences between younger and older people.<\/p>\n

Aging researchers are interested in examining epigenetic patterns that change how the DNA in our cells fold and how genes behave. Unlike our DNA genome, which stays the same throughout our lifetime in every cell of our body, our epigenome<\/a> can change through time and can be influenced by our behavior and environment. These epigenetic changes can indicate a person’s biological age, which may differ from chronological age.<\/p>\n

The researchers took blood samples and looked at patterns of DNA methylation at key sites in the human genome that are related to predictors of lifespan and mortality. While there are many types of epigenetic markers, scientists know the most about DNA methylation. The researchers used these DNA methylation results to calculate five “clocks” of biological aging<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Study participants completed a series of cognitive tests on smartphones to gauge their performance on working memory<\/a> and processing speed. In one test, participants saw a set of symbols on the top of the screen which they had to match to symbols on the bottom of the screen as quickly as possible. In another test, they viewed three red dots on a grid for a few seconds. Then, they were distracted by searching for “E’s” in a screen of “F’s.” After this, they were asked to place the dots back to their original place on the grid.<\/p>\n

The participants completed dozens of tests over two weeks, providing a profile of the person across different times of day, situations, and activities.<\/p>\n

These profiles summarize their typical performance level, as well how much their scores fluctuated from one testing to another. Inconsistency is increasingly proposed to be a potential early indicator of dementia. These fluctuations could reflect the extra effort someone needs to put in to perform as usual.<\/p>\n

Overall, the study results revealed the following:<\/p>\n