Researchers have developed a machine learning-powered blood test that analyzes more than 200 proteins to gauge a person’s rate of biological aging, which the team says can be used to estimate the person’s risk of developing 18 major age-related diseases and of dying prematurely from any cause.
The work helps validate the use of the proteome the entire set of proteins present in the body at a given time as an accurate gauge of how old a person is, not in years, but in terms of how their cells are functioning.

The findings provide insight into the biological pathways that lead to a person developing multiple age-related diseases, open doors to better understanding how genes and environment interact in aging, and could help researchers develop treatments for age-related diseases and assess their effectiveness.

Though the test is currently restricted to the research lab, the team is working on developing it into something anyone can order at a doctor’s office.
Austin Argentieri, HMS research fellow in medicine in the Analytic and Translational Genetics Unit at Massachusetts General Hospital, is lead author of the study, published Aug. 8 in Nature Medicine.

Source : https://hms.harvard.edu/news/gauging-biological-age-disease-risk-proteomic-clock