Association of Race and Poverty Status With DNA Methylation–Based Age

Abstract

ImportanceThe Dunedin Pace of Aging Calculated From the Epigenome (DunedinPACE) measure is a newly constructed DNA methylation (DNAm) biomarker associated with morbidity, mortality, and adverse childhood experiences in several cohorts with European ancestry. However, there are few studies of the DunedinPACE measure among socioeconomically and racially diverse cohorts with longitudinal assessments.ObjectiveTo investigate the association of race and poverty status with DunedinPACE scores in a socioeconomically diverse middle-aged cohort of African American and White participants.Design, Setting, and ParticipantsThis longitudinal cohort study used data from the Healthy Aging in Neighborhoods of Diversity Across the Life Span (HANDLS) study. HANDLS is a population-based study of socioeconomically diverse African American and White adults aged 30 to 64 years at baseline in Baltimore, Maryland, with follow-up approximately every 5 years. The current study was restricted to 470 participants with blood samples at 2 time points: August 14, 2004, to June 22, 2009 (visit 1), and June 23, 2009, to September 12, 2017 (visit 2). Genome-wide DNAm was assessed at visit 1 (chronological age, 30-64 years) and visit 2. Data were analyzed from March 18, 2022, to February 9, 2023.Main Outcomes and MeasuresDunedinPACE scores were estimated for each participant at 2 visits. DunedinPACE scores are values scaled to a mean of 1, interpretable with reference to a rate of 1 year of biological aging per 1 year of chronological aging. Linear mixed-model regression analysis was used to examine the trajectories of DunedinPACE scores by chronological age, race, sex, and poverty status.ResultsAmong 470 participants, the mean (SD) chronological age at visit 1 was 48.7 (8.7) years. Participants were balanced by sex (238 [50.6%] were men and 232 [49.4%] were women), race (237 [50.4%] African American and 233 [49.6%] White), and poverty status (236 [50.2%] living below poverty level and 234 [49.8%] living above poverty level). The mean (SD) time between visits was 5.1 (1.5) years. Overall, the mean (SD) DunedinPACE score was 1.07 (0.14), representing a 7% faster pace of biological aging than chronological aging. Linear mixed-effects regression analysis revealed an association between the 2-way interaction between race and poverty status (White race and household income below poverty level: β = 0.0665; 95% CI, 0.0298-0.1031; P < .001) and significantly higher DunedinPACE scores and an association between quadratic age (age squared: β = −0.0113; 95% CI, −0.0212 to −0.0013; P = .03) and significantly higher DunedinPACE scores.Conclusions and RelevanceIn this cohort study, household income below poverty level and African American race were associated with higher DunedinPACE scores. These findings suggest that the DunedinPACE biomarker varies with race and poverty status as adverse social determinants of health. Consequently, measures of accelerated aging should be based on representative samples.

Linked emergence of racial disparities in mental health and epigenetic biological aging across childhood and adolescence

“…Additionally, Black compared to White identifying children, children living in more racially segregated neighborhoods, and marginalized children with darker skin tones, tended to have higher age-9 levels of biological aging and more biological age acceleration over adolescence. This is in line with previous cross-sectional findings in children and adults (Martz et al, 2024; Mitchell et al, 2016; Raffington, Schneper, et al, 2023b; Shen et al, 2023). For example, Hicken and colleagues (2023) find that Black compared to White identifying adults have higher GrimAge and PhenoAge Acceleration (GrimAge Acceleration: b = .42, 95% CI .20 to .64, p <.001; PhenoAge Acceleration: b = .29, 95% CI .02 to .57, p <.001).…”

Educational Mobility, Pace of Aging, and Lifespan Among Participants in the Framingham Heart Study

“… 14 , 25 , 26 , 27 , 29 Second, the algorithm is associated with social determinants of healthy aging in young, midlife, and older adults. 14 , 15 , 28 , 30 , 31 , 56 Third, the algorithm shows evidence of being modified by calorie restriction, 57 an intervention that modifies the basic biology of aging in animal experiments. 58 Confidence in results is further supported by the consistency of our findings with those for alternative measurements of biological aging in independent cohorts.…”

“… 24 In diverse cohorts in the US and around the globe, this algorithm has been associated with incident morbidity and disability, survival, and a range of socioenvironmental exposures including educational attainment. 14 , 15 , 25 , 26 , 27 , 28 , 29 , 30 , 31 , 32 We calculated participants’ clock values from their DNAm data calculated using code available on GitHub. 33…”

A blood biomarker of accelerated aging in the body associates with worse structural integrity in the brain: replication across three cohorts

“…First, most of the data analyzed were derived from White participants reflecting the paucity of racial and ethnic diversity in datasets that have both DNA methylation and brain MRI. Notably, there is evidence that DunedinPACE can index health outcomes amongst both Black and Asian individuals (Graf et al, 2022; Schmitz et al, 2022; Schmitz and Duque, 2022; Shen et al, 2023). Second, DunedinPACE does not necessarily represent methylation of specific genes thought to contribute to neurodegeneration or aging progression, and it is best thought of as a non-causal statistical indicator of multi-organ decline.…”

“…Notably, there is evidence that DunedinPACE can index health outcomes amongst both Black and Asian individuals (Graf et al, 2022;Schmitz and Duque, 2022;Shen et al, 2023). Second, DunedinPACE does not necessarily represent methylation of specific genes thought to contribute to neurodegeneration or aging progression, and it is best thought of as a non-causal statistical indicator of multi-organ decline.…”