Dietary restriction and genetics can impact health and lifespan in various species. Di Francesco et al. investigated the effects of caloric restriction and intermittent fasting on the lifespan of 960 genetically diverse female mice, in which hundreds of physiological traits were profiled. These diverse outbred mice were randomized to one of five diet groups: ad libitum; 1 day or 2 consecutive days of fasting per week; or caloric restriction by 20% or 40% of food intake. The results provide a comprehensive view of the impact of dietary restriction on lifespan and physiological traits such as body weight and composition, health and metabolic traits, and immune and hematological traits. The analyses show associations of body weight with lifespan, as well as age-related changes in a large number of immunological traits, suggesting the maintenance of body weight and immune cell populations as potential biomarkers for longevity that might have clinical implications. Notably, the study also analyzed whole-genome genotyping data of the mice and assessed the combined effects of genetics and dietary restriction, indicating the more important contribution of genetic background than diet to lifespan.

Original reference: Nature 634, 684–692 (2024)

饮食限制和遗传会影响各种物种的健康和寿命。Di Francesco 等人研究了热量限制和间歇性禁食对 960 只遗传多样化的雌性小鼠寿命的影响，其中分析了数百种生理特征。这些不同的近交小鼠被随机分配到五个饮食组之一：随意;每周禁食 1 天或连续 2 天;或限制食物摄入量的 20% 或 40% 的热量。结果提供了饮食限制对寿命和生理特性（如体重和组成、健康和代谢特性以及免疫和血液学特性）影响的全面视图。分析显示体重与寿命的关联，以及大量免疫学特征的年龄相关变化，表明体重和免疫细胞群的维持是可能具有临床意义的长寿潜在生物标志物。值得注意的是，该研究还分析了小鼠的全基因组基因分型数据，并评估了遗传学和饮食限制的综合影响，表明遗传背景对寿命的贡献比饮食更重要。

原始参考：Nature634， 684–692 （2024）