Document Type
Journal Article
Publication Title
OMICS: A Journal of Integrative Biology
Volume
25
Issue
4
First Page
242
Last Page
248
PubMed ID
33794663
Publisher
Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., Publishers
School
School of Medical and Health Sciences / Centre for Precision Health
RAS ID
35937
Grant Number
NHMRC Number : 1112767
Abstract
A global rise in life expectancy comes with an increased burden of serious life-long health issues and the need for useful real-time measures of the aging processes. Studies have shown the value of biochemical signatures of immunoglobulin G (IgG) N-glycosylation as clinically relevant biomarkers to differentiate healthy from accelerated aging. Most human biological processes rely on glycosylation of proteins to regulate their function, but these events appear sensitive to environmental changes, age, and the presence of disease. Specifically, variations in N-glycosylation of IgG can adversely affect inflammatory pathways underpinning unhealthy aging and chronic disease pathogenesis. This expert review highlights the discrepancies between an organism's age in years of life (chronological age) versus age in terms of health status (biological age). The article examines and synthesizes the studies on IgG N-glycan profiles and the third alphabet of life, the sugar code, in relation to their relevance as dynamic indicators of aging, and to differentiate between normal and accelerated aging. The levels of N-glycan structures change with aging, suggesting that monitoring the alterations of serum glycan biosignatures with glycomics might allow real-time studies of human aging in the near future. Glycomics brings in yet another systems science technology platform to strengthen the emerging multiomics studies of aging and aging-related diseases.
DOI
10.1089/omi.2021.0016
Comments
Final publication is available from Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers http://dx.doi.org/10.1089/omi.2021.0016
This is an author's accepted manuscript of: Yu, X., & Wang, W. (2021). A rapidly aging world in the 21st century: Hopes from glycomics and unraveling the biomarkers of aging with the sugar code. OMICS: A Journal of Integrative Biology, 25(4), 242-248.
https://doi.org/10.1089/omi.2021.0016