According to a report on the Science Daily website, scientists from Spain and Italy have identified a group of proteins in laboratory mice that may help explain two long-standing medical mysteries: why women live longer than men, and why calorie restriction is considered a proven method for extending lifespan. The research, published in the Journal of Proteome Research on July 3, will help scientists understand the biochemical basis of aging and provide new ideas for extending human life.
In this study, researchers confirmed that the average lifespan of females is longer than that of males. Previous studies have also shown that animals fed a very low-calorie diet can maximize their lifespan. Scientists speculated that the reasons might involve hormones, stress, cardiovascular protection, and other factors.
Research using mice as subjects found that compared to male mice on a normal diet, female mice and mice on a calorie-restricted diet produce 27 different proteins in their livers, and it is these proteins that influence their lifespan.
Regarding the issue of why women live longer than men, some scientists have previously pointed out that genetically, women inherit the XX sex chromosome, while men inherit the XY. The human body has a gene involved in repairing deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA), which is associated with the X chromosome, so women are naturally born with an extra repair gene. Additionally, some enzyme genes that regulate human cell metabolism are also located on the X chromosome, which can speed up cell renewal and maintain the body's vitality. In this regard, men are at a disadvantage. In terms of the hormones secreted by men and women, men have more androgens and less estrogen. In fact, estrogen helps to enhance the human immune system, so women's ability to resist infections and viruses is stronger than men's. At the same time, estrogen is also beneficial to the metabolism of cholesterol and lipoproteins, so the incidence of arteriosclerosis and cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases in women is much lower than in men. Correspondingly, the mortality rate caused by these conditions is also lower. Furthermore, physiological phenomena in women such as menstruation, pregnancy, and lactation, as well as the tendency to cry more easily, also contribute to their longer lifespan compared to men.