Genetic polymorphisms and human aging: association studies deliver.

Aging shows great heterogeneity between people, with a substantial part attributable to genetic differences. In a candidate gene study across three older populations, polymorphisms in the p16/p15 locus (INK4a/INK4b, CDKN2a/b) were associated with a substantial difference in levels of physical functioning. Recent large-scale genome wide association (GWA) studies for type 2 diabetes and myocardial infarction have also found major variants in this locus, confirming the p16/p15 region as a key aging site. Many other GWA findings are in novel pathways, providing new potential targets for interventions to slow aging.