Scientists are developing a simple blood test to measure how fast the body’s tissues are ageing at a molecular level. They have found that as tissue ages, concentrations of a protein called p16INK4a dramatically increases. Measuring levels of the protein could potentially provide a way to assess how healthy the tissues are, and how they will respond to surgery or drugs. The University of North Carolina study appears in the journal Aging Cell. Scientists are already interested in p16INK4a because it is known to play a role in suppressing the development of cancer. The protein is present in the T-cells of the immune system, which play a key role in fighting disease, and repairing tissue damage. Physical inactivity link Not only did the North Carolina team show that levels were closely related to cellular ageing, they also found a strong link with certain behaviours, such as tobacco use and physical inactivity, which are known to accelerate the ageing process. They say they have overcome technical hurdles to begin perfecting a simple blood test to detect levels of the protein. To test its accuracy, they analysed blood samples from 170 people, who […]