A groundbreaking breakthrough in biotechnology has emerged from Manhattan, where Tally Health has unveiled its revolutionary biological age measurement device, known as CheekAge. This non-invasive instrument analyzes cheek cells to determine a person’s biological age, a figure that can differ markedly from chronological age, which refers to the number of years an individual has lived.
This discovery is crucial, since a significant discrepancy between these two ages has been associated with a considerable increase in the risk of mortality from diseases.
Traditionally, assessment of biological age has been done using biochemical tests that require blood tests, focusing primarily on DNA. However, CheekAge uses a simple buccal swab, which represents a considerable advance in accessibility and convenience for users.
The method is based on DNA methylation, a natural process that involves adding chemical tags to DNA, which can alter the function of a gene without changing its sequence. This methylation is sensitive to various factors, including diet, stress, and exposure to pollutants, making the assessment dynamic and representative of current health status.
A recent study, published in the journal Frontiers in Agingvalidated the effectiveness of CheekAge using blood samples from a group of 1,500 senior citizens in the United Kingdom.
Participants underwent blood tests every three years to detect DNA methylation, and the most recent data was used to calculate their CheekAge. Max Shokhirev, director of computational biology and data science at Tally Health, said that even though their device was trained with cheek cells, the results showed a significant correlation with mortality based on blood tests.
This is notable considering that the blood data set used for testing lacked about half of the data needed to effectively predict biological age using CheekAge.
An improvement for public health
CheekAge’s ability to provide a measure of mortality risk, without providing an accurate prediction about the time or manner of death, represents an advance in the understanding of human health. This allows individuals and healthcare professionals to have a clearer perspective on the biological state of the body compared to the age indicated by the calendar.
Additionally, Tally Health has shown that CheekAge outperforms several first-generation watches that were developed years ago and is comparable to DNAm PhenoAge, a predictor that uses blood to determine the risk of chronic diseases and mortality.
Adiv Johnson, director of scientific affairs and education at Tally Health, highlighted that The company is committed to ongoing research to better understand the variables that affect CheekAge, including various diseases, health conditions and lifestyle factors.
This advance not only marks progress in the field of biotechnology, but also represents a significant opportunity to improve public health. Early identification of increased biological risk may allow timely interventions, which could extend life and improve quality of life.
Tally Health’s innovation suggests that the future of health monitoring could become more accessible and less invasive, giving more people the opportunity to gain valuable information about their well-being.
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