Research also identifies key methylation sites, along with processes and transcription factor targets linking epigenetics to health and aging.
A new peer-reviewed study in the journal GeroScience highlights the associations between the next-generation epigenetic aging clock, CheekAge, and a variety of diseases and conditions. CheekAge serves as the foundation TallyAge Test, a non-invasive at-home buccal swab test offered by consumer longevity company Tally Health.
Comparing CheekAge with five “first-generation” epigenetic aging clocks, the study analyzed 25 publicly available DNA methylation datasets, revealing significant correlations between CheekAge and 33 different health and disease variables. Among these were major depressive disorder, psychological trauma, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, pulmonary fibrosis, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and multiple types of cancers and tumors.
“A critical takeaway from this work is that we identify novel health signals significantly associated with older or younger epigenetic ages across six different epigenetic aging clocks,” said Tally Health’s head of scientific affairs, Dr Adiv Johnson. “For example, we observed accelerated epigenetic aging in individuals exposed to PBB-153, a persistent industrial chemical and endocrine disruptor. This finding adds to a growing body of evidence that human aging is influenced by environmental factors.”
The study also identified specific DNA methylation sites that influence CheekAge’s predictive accuracy. The findings provide deeper biological insights into how certain methylomic patterns contribute to various diseases and conditions. By pinpointing relevant biological processes and transcription factor targets, the study aims to highlight the connection between epigenetics, health and aging.
“Our research also identifies unique DNA methylation sites that either enhance or weaken associations with CheekAge, offering novel biological insights and a deeper understanding of how specific methylomic patterns relate to various diseases and conditions,” Johnson told us.
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Tally Health co-founders Dr David Sinclair and Melanie Goldey.
Co-founded by renowned aging researcher Dr David Sinclair, Tally Health’s approach combines repeated epigenetic age testing with personalized interventions, with the goal of producing measurable improvements in biological age. The company claims that customers who tested for more than six months saw an average TallyAge reduction of nearly ten months, while those who continued for over a year achieved an average improvement of more than 1.5 years.
“We’re proud to demonstrate that CheekAge, the computational model that inspired our TallyAge Test, captures a broad range of biological signals associated with disease and health,” said the study’s first author Max Shokhirev, head of computational biology and data science at Tally Health. “These findings reinforce that advanced epigenetic aging clocks like CheekAge are powerful computational tools for exploring critical health associations.”
Tally CEO Melanie Goldey previously told us that the cheek swab collection method employed by the company is more appealing to consumers than a blood test.
“But the more scientific reason to choose the cheek swab is that we have seen that buccal tissue can serve as a great proxy for what’s going on within the body,” she said. “So down the line we can start to hone in on certain areas of health and create additional clocks – a menopause clock, or a fertility clock, for example – without having to disrupt the user experience.”
READ MORE: Our exclusive interview with Tally Health CEO Melanie Goldey
Main photograph: microgen/Envato. Article photograph courtesy of Tally Health.