Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2009 Jun;31(2):155-62.
doi: 10.1007/s11357-009-9092-5. Epub 2009 Apr 18.

Interleukin-6 plasma level increases with age in an Italian elderly population ("The Treviso Longeva"-Trelong-study) with a sex-specific contribution of rs1800795 polymorphism

Diego Albani  1 , Sara Batelli, Letizia Polito, Francesca Prato, Marzia Pesaresi, Giovanni Battista Gajo, Sergio De Angeli, Andrea Zanardo, Daniela Galimberti, Elio Scarpini, Maurizio Gallucci, Gianluigi Forloni
Affiliations

Interleukin-6 plasma level increases with age in an Italian elderly population ("The Treviso Longeva"-Trelong-study) with a sex-specific contribution of rs1800795 polymorphism

Diego Albani et al. Age (Dordr). 2009 Jun.

Abstract

The transcription rate of interleukin-6 (IL-6) can be reduced by the C-allele of a polymorphism (rs1800795) located in the 5'-flanking region of the IL-6 gene (NM_000600), and IL-6 plasma levels increase with age. We assembled an elderly Italian population ["The Treviso Longeva (Trelong) study", age range 70-106 years, n = 668 subjects] and assessed rs1800795 genotype and plasma IL-6 concentrations. The rs1800795 genotype was also assessed in an independent Italian study ("Milan" study, age range 70-96, n = 245 subjects). To verify an age- or sex-specific effect of rs1800795 genotype we compared people younger (70-85) and older (85+) than 85 years of age. We found a significant reduction in the frequency of rs1800795 C/C genotype in 85+ men from the Trelong study, while in the Milan study this data did not reach significance. However, considering the two studies together, the frequency of the rs1800795 C/C genotype was significantly lower in 85+ than in 70-85 males (4.0% and 10.7%, respectively), while it remained unchanged in females. As for IL-6 plasma levels, after a multivariate analysis to control for confounders, a correlation between age and plasma IL-6 concentrations was revealed (P < 0.0001). An increase in circulating IL-6 levels in the entire 85+ group compared to the 70-85 group (P < 0.05, Tukey's test) was also noticed. We suggest a sex-specific pattern for genetic variability linked to inflammatory response and longevity, consistent with the age-related increase in IL-6.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Age-related increase in circulating IL-6. Scatter-plot showing log transformed individual plasma IL-6 levels measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The superimposed line shows the linear interpolation, the equation and statistical data of which are reported in the box. r Correlation coefficient
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Effect of rs1800795 genotype on IL-6 circulating level in the Trelong population. Plasma IL-6 was measured by ELISA as described in Materials and methods. Blue columns Mean plasma IL-6 concentration, red standard error. The observed trend did not reach statistical significance
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

References

    1. {'text': '', 'ref_index': 1, 'ids': [{'type': 'DOI', 'value': '10.1371/journal.pgen.0030129', 'is_inner': False, 'url': 'https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.0030129'}, {'type': 'PMC', 'value': 'PMC1994694', 'is_inner': False, 'url': 'https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC1994694/'}, {'type': 'PubMed', 'value': '17907808', 'is_inner': True, 'url': 'https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/17907808/'}]}
    2. Antebi A (2007) Genetics of aging in Caenorhabditis elegans. PLoS Genet 3:1565–1571. doi:10.1371/journal.pgen.0030129 - PMC - PubMed
    1. {'text': '', 'ref_index': 1, 'ids': [{'type': 'DOI', 'value': '10.1016/j.exger.2004.03.034', 'is_inner': False, 'url': 'https://doi.org/10.1016/j.exger.2004.03.034'}, {'type': 'PubMed', 'value': '15236769', 'is_inner': True, 'url': 'https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15236769/'}]}
    2. Barbieri M, Bonafè M, Rizzo MR, Ragno E, Olivieri F, Marchegiani F, Franceschi C, Paolisso G (2004) Gender specific association of genetic variation in peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPAR) gamma-2 with longevity. Exp Gerontol 39:1095–1100. doi:10.1016/j.exger.2004.03.034 - PubMed
    1. {'text': '', 'ref_index': 1, 'ids': [{'type': 'DOI', 'value': '10.1002/1521-4141(200108)31:8<2357::AID-IMMU2357>3.0.CO;2-X', 'is_inner': False, 'url': 'https://doi.org/10.1002/1521-4141(200108)31:8<2357::aid-immu2357>3.0.co;2-x'}, {'type': 'PubMed', 'value': '11500818', 'is_inner': True, 'url': 'https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/11500818/'}]}
    2. Bonafè M, Olivieri F, Cavallone L, Giovagnetti S, Mayegiani F, Cardelli M, Pieri C, Marra M, Antonicelli R, Lisa R, Rizzo MR, Paolisso G, Monti D, Franceschi C (2001) A gender-dependent genetic predisposition to produce high levels of IL-6 is detrimental for longevity. Eur J Immunol 31:2357–2361. doi:10.1002/1521-4141(200108) 31:8 &lt; 2357::AID-IMMU2357 &gt; 3.0.CO;2-X - PubMed
    1. {'text': '', 'ref_index': 1, 'ids': [{'type': 'DOI', 'value': '10.1016/j.exger.2004.03.037', 'is_inner': False, 'url': 'https://doi.org/10.1016/j.exger.2004.03.037'}, {'type': 'PubMed', 'value': '15236771', 'is_inner': True, 'url': 'https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15236771/'}]}
    2. Capurso C, Solfrizzi V, D′Introno A, Colacicco AM, Capurso SA, Semeraro C, Capurso A, Panza F (2004) Interleukin 6-174 G/C promoter gene polymorphism in centenarians: no evidence of association with human longevity or interaction with apolipoprotein E alleles. Exp Gerontol 39:1109–1114. doi:10.1016/j.exger.2004.03.037 - PubMed
    1. {'text': '', 'ref_index': 1, 'ids': [{'type': 'DOI', 'value': '10.1196/annals.1322.001', 'is_inner': False, 'url': 'https://doi.org/10.1196/annals.1322.001'}, {'type': 'PubMed', 'value': '15915584', 'is_inner': True, 'url': 'https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15915584/'}]}
    2. Caruso C, Lio D, Cavallone L, Franceschi C (2004) Aging, longevity, inflammation, and cancer. Ann N Y Acad Sci 1028:1–13. doi:10.1196/annals.1322.001 - PubMed