(Press-News.org) Osaka-Japan - We all know someone who seems to defy aging—people who look younger than their peers despite being the same age. What’s their secret? Scientists at Osaka University (Japan) may have found a way to quantify this difference. By incorporating hormone (steroid) metabolism pathways into an AI-driven model, they have developed a new system to estimate a person’s biological age a measure of how well their body has aged, rather than just counting the years since birth.
Using just five drops of blood, this new method analyzes 22 key steroids and their interactions to provide a more precise health assessment. The team’s breakthrough study, published in Science Advances, offers a potential step forward in personalized health management, allowing for earlier detection of age-related health risks and tailored interventions.
Unlocking the Body’s Aging Signature
Aging isn’t just about the number of years we’ve lived—it’s shaped by genetics, lifestyle, and environmental factors. Traditional methods for estimating biological age rely on broad biomarkers, such as DNA methylation or protein levels, but these approaches often overlook the intricate hormonal networks that regulate the body’s internal balance.
“Our bodies rely on hormones to maintain homeostasis, so we thought, why not use these as key indicators of aging?” says Dr. Qiuyi Wang, co-first author of the study. To test this idea, the research team focused on steroid hormones, which play a crucial role in metabolism, immune function, and stress response.
A New AI-Powered Model
The team developed a deep neural network (DNN) model that incorporates steroid metabolism pathways, making it the first AI model to explicitly account for the interactions between different steroid molecules. Instead of looking at absolute steroid levels—which can vary widely between individuals—the model examines steroid ratios, providing a more personalized and accurate assessment of biological age.
“Our approach reduces the noise caused by individual steroid level differences and allows the model to focus on meaningful patterns,” explains Dr. Zi Wang, co-first and corresponding author of this work. The model was trained on blood samples from hundreds of individuals, revealing that biological age differences tend to widen as people get older—an effect the researchers liken to a river widening as it flows downstream.
Key Insights and Implications
One of the study’s most striking findings involves cortisol, a steroid hormone commonly associated with stress. The researchers found that when cortisol levels doubled, biological age increased by approximately 1.5 times. This suggests that chronic stress could accelerate aging at a biochemical level, reinforcing the importance of stress management in maintaining long-term health.
“Stress is often discussed in general terms, but our findings provide concrete evidence that it has a measurable impact on biological aging,” says Professor Toshifumi Takao, a corresponding author and an expert in analytical chemistry and mass spectrometry.
The researchers believe this AI-powered biological age model could pave the way for more personalized health monitoring. Future applications may include early disease detection, customized wellness programs, and even lifestyle recommendations tailored to slow down aging.
Looking Ahead
While the study represents a significant step forward, the team acknowledges that biological aging is a complex process influenced by many factors beyond hormones. “This is just the beginning,” says Dr. Z. Wang. “By expanding our dataset and incorporating additional biological markers, we hope to refine the model further and unlock deeper insights into the mechanisms of aging.”
With ongoing advancements in AI and biomedical research, the dream of accurately measuring—and even slowing—biological aging is becoming increasingly feasible. For now, though, the ability to assess one’s “aging speed” with a simple blood test could mark a game-changing development in preventive healthcare.
The article, “Biological age prediction using a DNN model based on pathways of steroidogenesis,” was published in Science Advances of the United States of America at DOI: https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.adt2624.
About Osaka University
Osaka University was founded in 1931 as one of the seven imperial universities of Japan and is now one of Japan's leading comprehensive universities with a broad disciplinary spectrum. This strength is coupled with a singular drive for innovation that extends throughout the scientific process, from fundamental research to the creation of applied technology with positive economic impacts. Its commitment to innovation has been recognized in Japan and around the world. Now, Osaka University is leveraging its role as a Designated National University Corporation selected by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology to contribute to innovation for human welfare, sustainable development of society, and social transformation.
Website: https://resou.osaka-u.ac.jp/en
END
What’s your body really worth? New AI model reveals your true biological age from 5 drops of blood
2025-03-14
[Attachments] See images for this press release:
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
Protein accidentally lassos itself, helping explain unusual refolding behavior
2025-03-14
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Proteins are long molecules that must fold into complex three-dimensional structures to perform their cellular functions. This folding process occasionally goes awry, resulting in misfolded proteins that, if not corrected, can potentially lead to disease. Now, a new study has described a potential mechanism that could help explain why some proteins refold in a different pattern than expected. The researchers, led by chemists at Penn State, found that a type of misfolding, in which the ...
With bird flu in raw milk, many in U.S. still do not know risks of consuming it
2025-03-14
PHILADELPHIA – Although the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) located H5N1 bird flu virus in samples of raw, or unpasteurized, milk in tests in four states in April 2024, and bird flu has been detected in commercially sold raw milk, many Americans do not know that consuming raw milk and its products poses greater health risks than consuming pasteurized milk and its products, especially for children. Consuming raw milk can expose one to Salmonella, E. coli, Campylobacter, Cryptosporidium, Listeria, and Brucella – and, potentially, H5N1 bird flu.
A majority of U.S. adults (56%) knows that drinking raw milk from cows, sheep, or goats is less safe than drinking pasteurized milk. ...
University of Minnesota research team awarded $3.8 million grant to develop cell therapy to combat Alzheimer’s disease
2025-03-14
MINNEAPOLIS/ST. PAUL (03/14/2025) — A University of Minnesota research team was recently awarded a five-year, $3.8 million grant from the U.S. National Institutes of Health to develop a new cell therapy to combat Alzheimer’s disease. More than 55 million people worldwide live with dementia, which includes Alzheimer's disease and other related conditions.
The project aims to adapt advanced techniques developed for cancer treatment to create specialized macrophages — immune cells that can surround and remove proteins from their environment — to seek out and clear harmful proteins in the brain.
"Engineered ...
UConn uncovers new clue on what is leading to neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s and ALS
2025-03-14
In Nature Neuroscience, UConn School of Medicine researchers have revealed a new scientific clue that could unlock the key cellular pathway leading to devastating neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s disease, and the progressive damage to the brain’s frontal and temporal lobes in frontotemporal degeneration (FTD) and the associated disease amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).
The study, “Endothelial TDP-43 Depletion Disrupts Core Blood-Brain Barrier Pathways in Neurodegeneration,” was published on March 14, 2025. The lead author, Omar Moustafa Fathy, an MD/Ph.D. candidate at the Center for Vascular Biology at UConn School of ...
Resuscitation in out-of-hospital cardiac arrest – it’s how quickly it is done, rather than who does it
2025-03-14
Key takeaways:
The proportion of bystanders (as opposed to emergency medical services) performing cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) on individuals experiencing out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) has steadily increased over the past decades.
The study emphasises that the speed of CPR initiation, rather than who performs it, is crucial to survival and better outcomes.
Each 5-minute delay in return of spontaneous circulation in patients experiencing OCHA is associated with a 38% increased risk of death.
Based on these findings, the authors emphasise that increasing the number of individuals trained in proper CPR ...
A closer look at biomolecular ‘silly putty’
2025-03-14
Biomolecular condensates are shifting blobs in our cells that organize cellular matter. They are distinct molecular communities made of DNA, RNA and proteins that “condense” molecules to key locations, yet they frequently defy description. Partly this is because they are so small, they cannot be measured using traditional microscopes.
“These blobs were once described as being ‘liquid-like’ because some of them were observed to kiss, fuse, drip and flow like raindrops on windshields,” said Rohit Pappu, Gene K. Beare Distinguished Professor of biomedical engineering ...
Oxytocin system of breastfeeding affected in mothers with postnatal depression
2025-03-14
The oxytocin system – which helps release breast milk and strengthens the bond between mother and baby – may be affected during breastfeeding in mothers experiencing postnatal depression, finds a new study by UCL researchers.
The new research, published in Psychoneuroendocrinology, investigated the link between maternal mood and the oxytocin pathway during breastfeeding, in mothers with and without symptoms of postnatal depression.
Oxytocin is a hormone that is released in both the brain and body. It plays a central role in childbirth and breastfeeding, ...
Liquid metal-enabled synergetic cooling and charging: a leap forward for electric vehicles
2025-03-14
A recent study published in Engineering presents a novel approach to address the challenges of high-power direct current fast charging (DC-HPC) in electric vehicles (EVs). The research, led by a team from China Agricultural University, focuses on developing a synergetic cooling and charging strategy using a gallium-based liquid metal flexible charging connector (LMFCC).
As the demand for EVs grows, DC-HPC technology, especially for megawatt-level charging currents (≥1000 A), is crucial for reducing charging time. However, it brings the ...
Defensive firearm use is far less common than exposure to gun violence
2025-03-14
Those with access to firearms rarely use their weapon to defend themselves, and instead are far more likely to be exposed to gun violence in other ways, according to a Rutgers Health study.
An overwhelming majority of firearm users, or about 92%, indicated they never have used their weapons to defend themselves, with less than 1% say they did in the previous year, a new study by the New Jersey Gun Violence Research Center found.
“Adults with firearm access are far more likely to be exposed to gun violence than they are to defend themselves with their firearms,” ...
Lifetime and past-year defensive gun use
2025-03-14
About The Study: In this survey of adults with firearm access, defensive gun use (DGU) was rare relative to gun violence exposure. Perceived threats may not necessitate DGU, and given the association between DGU and gun violence exposure, the consequences of DGU may be substantial. Narratives centering DGU as a consideration in firearm policies may misstate the risk profile of firearm access.
Corresponding Author: To contact the corresponding author, Michael D. Anestis, PhD, email mda141@sph.rutgers.edu.
To access the ...