Centenarians overexpress BCL-xL, which confers them a protection against apoptosis, oxidative stress and immunosenescence

Centenarians not only have an extraordinary longevity, but also show a compression of morbidity. They preserve the capacity of maintaining homeostasis, and this is the reason for them to reach such a long life. We studied their mRNA expression profile and identified 1721 mRNAs differentially expressed by centenarians when compared with septuagenarians and young people. A sub-network analysis showed six common genes: interferon, T-cell receptor, tumor necrosis factor, SP1 transcription factor, transforming growth factor and IL-32.These six centenarian-specific genes are related to Bcl-xL, Fas, and Fas ligand all of them involved in the control of apoptosis. RT-PCR analysis confirmed that cen…