Professor Keiko Takihara and his group at Osaka University discovered that smoking affects the function of α-croto, a gene involved in aging.It may be used as a parameter to investigate the state of accelerated aging caused by smoking.
What we paid attention to here was a gene called α-croto. α-Klotho has an anti-inflammatory effect and is also secreted into the blood.It is known that when physical and mental stress is applied, the concentration is usually increased to suppress inflammation, but the concentration decreases due to arteriosclerosis, diabetes and aging.In this study, we investigated how the blood concentration of α-Klotho changes with smoking.As a result, it became clear that smokers had thinner α-crotoe than non-smokers.
From this, it may be possible to investigate the degree of aging due to smoking by examining the blood concentration of α-Klotho in the blood in the future.If it becomes possible to quantify the damage inflicted on the body by smoking habits, it will contribute to the promotion of smoking cessation.