A new blood test can analyze protein signatures to determine the biological age of 11 organs—including the brain, heart, and liver—and predict their risk of disease within the next decade. This breakthrough from Stanford Medicine, published in *Nature Medicine*, offers novel insights into anti-aging therapies and enables early intervention before illnesses develop.
Researchers led by Tony Wyss-Coray randomly selected nearly 45,000 individuals aged 40–70 from the UK Biobank, monitoring them for 17 years. They analyzed approximately 3,000 proteins in each participant’s blood, some specific to individual organs. An algorithm then processed the data to calculate each organ’s biological age.
One-third of participants had at least one organ aging significantly faster than their chronological age. Accelerated organ aging correlated strongly with higher risks of related disorders. The brain emerged as a critical longevity indicator: those with biologically older brains faced a 12-fold higher Alzheimer’s risk within 10 years compared to peers with younger brains. Brain age also predicted overall mortality—a very aged brain increased death risk by 182% over 15 years, while a youthful brain reduced it by 40%.