Association of 1513CC P2X7 receptor genotype with age

Aging is a progressive degenerative process associated with chronic low-level inflammation. P2X7R is a receptor for extracellular ATP that plays an important role in inflammation and has been associated with different age-related pathologies. The 1513A>C P2RX7 polymorphism causes an impairment in receptor responses with complete loss-of-function in 1513CC P2RX7 homozygous. We carried out a literature analysis to verify an association between the 1513CC genotype frequency and age. Our analysis shows no association between these parameters in the overall population or extra- European subjects. However, frequency of 1513CC P2RX7 homozygous increased with age in Caucasian European subjects. This result was confirmed when we examined genetic data from two genome-wide association studies including USA Caucasian cohorts. In conclusion, this study suggest that Caucasian individuals with an anti-inflammatory P2X7 receptor phenotype could have a longer life expectancy in high-income countries where the main causes of death are chronic inflammatory diseases.