Human aging clocks link blood proteins with body function
An observational study of 2,019 Chinese individuals aged 18–91 combined clinical, physiological and molecular data to build measures of aging.
Multicenter
Limit: Protein clocks are proxies for physiological capacity rather than direct measures of functional decline
Edited by Boris Djordjevic · AgingResearch.News
In an observational study of 2,019 Chinese individuals aged 18–91 years, researchers built three kinds of aging “clocks”—measures intended to assess biological age. One quantified decline in clinical measures and body function. Another combined a broader range of measurements for more precise predictions. The third focused on aging associated with particular organs.
Clocks based on proteins in blood plasma reflected both age in years and the body's overall physiological capacity. The authors also linked an age-dependent buildup of blood-clotting proteins to aging across multiple organs and activation of inflammation throughout the body. They presented the framework as a way to connect molecular signs of aging with declining function.
Why it matters
Connecting molecular changes with declining body function could help researchers assess how aging differs between people.
Caveats
The observational findings do not establish that clotting proteins caused organ aging or inflammation. The cohort comprised Chinese individuals aged 18–91; applicability to other populations remains uncertain.
- Machine learning
- Resources: datasets, atlases and tools
- Inflammation
- Cellular senescence
- Coagulation factors
- Humans
The paper
Multimodal clocks of human aging
Nanchang University; Chinese Academy of Sciences
Cell, May 8, 2026
