# Identification of rare variants and miRNAs associated with human longevity

> **NIH NIH U19** · ALBERT EINSTEIN COLLEGE OF MEDICINE · 2020 · $441,242

## Abstract

ABSTRACT – PROJECT 1
Recent advances in human genetics and genomics provide novel opportunities for the identification and
validation of drug targets. Aging is a major risk factor for many chronic diseases, including cardiovascular
disease, neurodegenerative diseases and a wide range of cancers. Interventions targeting the underlying
process of aging are expected to provide significant benefits to human health and substantially reduce the
social and economic costs associated with age-related disease and frailty. Studies in model organisms have
demonstrated that the rate of aging and the frequency and severity of age-related pathologies are influenced
by conserved genetic pathways and factors. Furthermore, genetic or pharmacological manipulation of these
conserved aging pathways can dramatically extend lifespan and healthspan in laboratory animals. This
overwhelming evidence raises hopes for new drugs that slow the aging process and attenuate age-related
disease in humans by modulating the conserved pathways of aging. The experiments outlined in this proposal
are aimed at exactly this goal by translating the breakthrough discoveries made in the model organisms into
the human situation. Genetic and epigenetic variants associated with longevity are potential targets for
therapeutic modulation and can provide strong support for their therapeutic validity as a drug target against
multiple age-related disease rather than a single disease at once. Here, we propose to identify and functionally
characterize genetic and epigenetic variants, the latter in the form of inter-individual variation in miRNA
expression levels, associated with human healthy aging and extreme longevity for therapeutic modulation to
improve human health span and lifespan. The information generated in Project 1 will provide a mechanistic
understanding of the causal relationships between genotypes, miRNA expression, and the associated
phenotypes, potentially leading to interventions that promote survival and health in people without genetic
predisposition to exceptional longevity.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9916686
- **Project number:** 5U19AG056278-05
- **Recipient organization:** ALBERT EINSTEIN COLLEGE OF MEDICINE
- **Principal Investigator:** YOUSIN SUH
- **Activity code:** U19 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $441,242
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** — → —

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9916686

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9916686, Identification of rare variants and miRNAs associated with human longevity (5U19AG056278-05). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-06-14 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9916686. Licensed CC0.

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