A recent meta-analysis of genome-wide association studies performed to identify polymorphisms associated with diseases of aging revealed that genes associated with multiple diseases known to occur in elderly individuals are generally associated with pathways regulating either inflammation or cell senescence, with the most highly significant susceptibility locations mapping to regulators of senescence, leading the authors to conclude that germline genetic heterogeneity in regulators of these pathways contributes significantly to onset of age-related disease [ 3 ]. 2.4.
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