1 Nov

GlycanAge — home blood test, estimating biological age and inflammation level

We all are looking for biomarkers of life choices affecting our biological age. A personal glycan profile is one of them. Glycans are blocks of life you probably never knew about. Glycans are sugar molecules that surround and modify proteins in your body. Moreover, they respond to lifestyle interventions and indicate the inflammatory state of the immune system, which affects biological age. So GlycanAge test determines your biological age by looking at the state of the immune system and inflammation.

Written by

Olga Borysova

Inflammation is one of the ageing key drivers

Our immune system contains immune cells and immune proteins dissolved in the blood.

"Glycans have the ability to modify immune proteins, making them protective or inflammatory."

The main protein of the immune system is the antibody immunoglobin G (IgG). Different glycans can attach to IgG and change its function, making it either pro-inflammatory or anti-inflammatory. Which one is good? In fact, we need a balance of both for a strong immune system. But ageing and unhealthy lifestyle imbalance immunity to an inflammatory state. Inflammation impact our health and how we age. Increased inflammation leads to joint pain, gut problems, and cognitive dysfunction and accelerates ageing.

Glycan profile changes with age but can be improved with healthy choices

It was found that glycans attached to IgG are very different in young people compared to those in old people. This is partly because of our chronological age (how many birthdays we have celebrated), as well as our biological age, influenced by individual lifestyle factors. Obesity, insulin resistance, and gut dysbiosis affect glycan composition and increase inflammation even in young people. But by making our lives healthier, we can rewind GlycanAge. It was shown that obesity increases biological age, estimated by GlycanAge, while a low-calorie diet switches the glycan profile to a younger, anti-inflammatory state.

"GlycanAge reflects that people of the same chronological age but with different lifestyles have different inflammation levels and so different biological ages. But these changes can be reversed."

GlycanAge can predict the menopause onset

The new application of GlycanAge for women’s healthcare was recently discovered. GlycanAge changes considerably before menopause and may serve as a marker of soon menopause onset. Menopause is a natural process, but for many women, this period is characterized by increased health risks (cardiovascular diseases, osteoporosis, etc.). It seems like the GlycanAge can predict possible health risks in this period of women’s life. So the rapid acceleration of the GlycanAge clock may show an optimal time point to consult your doctor about additional tests and hormone replacement therapy or bioidentical hormone replacement therapy prescription.

How to do the GlycanAge test

GlycanAge provides a quite easy home blood test. After collecting blood according to the instruction, you send it back to the lab for testing. You will then receive your biological age results digitally, as well as guidance with recommendations on how to improve your wellness.

GlycanAge pros and cons

Among different biological age clocks, the methylation clock is still the most verified and reliable in biological age estimation. Data about GlycanAge and biological age correlation is still not that abundant. But GlycanAge mostly reflects the immune system work and inflammation level, which is still crucial for your health and well-being. But consider that recent infections may affect the test results. So if you are looking for a dynamic biomarker that reflects how your life choices affect metabolic health and monitor immune system health and inflammation level, GlycanAge is a useful tool.

As Gordan Lauc, Professor at Genos labs attests:

"GlycanAge is the first of the series of glycan markers that can be used not only by clinicians but also end customers as well. While medicine is still focusing on treating disease, GlycanAge is helping people to navigate their own healthy ageing and prevent diseases."