Scientists were able to discern the rate of premature aging at the cellular level in HIV patients by using a biomarker as an epigenetic clock, according to new study published in Molecular Cell.
The biomarker used to measure cellular change in the study was methylation — the process by which small chemical groups are attached to DNA. Methylation can influence the process by which genes translate into proteins.
"What we've seen in previous studies is that as we age, methylation across the entire genome changes," said Trey Ideker, PhD, a professor of genetics in the Department of Medicine at the University of California San Diego and the study's other corresponding author.
More than 130 HIV patients undergoing antiretroviral therapy were monitored for the study. Participants had no other comorbidities that could potentially skew the data. Forty-four HIV-negative control subjects were also examined in the initial analysis. Data from forty-eight participants, both HIV positive and negative, were later analyzed to confirm the findings.
Researchers were able to determine that HIV patients genetically aged 4.9 years faster than uninfected individuals. This increased rate of aging was also associated with a 19 percent increase risk of mortality.
The study's authors state that patients with HIV should be notified of their increased risk for diseases brought on by aging. The authors also suggest drugs could eventually be developed to combat the epigenetic changes exhibited in the study.
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