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Aging and Inflammation in Two Epidemiological Worlds

¹ Department of Anthropology, University of California-Santa Barbara.
² Department of Anthropology, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque.
³ Andrus Gerontology Center and College of Letters, Arts and Sciences, University of Southern California, Los Angeles.

Address correspondence to Eileen M. Crimmins, PhD, University of Southern California, Andrus Gerontology Center, 3715 McClintock Ave., Suite 218, Los Angeles, CA 90089-0191. E-mail: crimmin{at}usc.edu

Abstract

Humans evolved in a world with high levels of infection resulting in high mortality across the life span and few survivors to advanced ages. Under such conditions, a strong acute-phase inflammatory response was required for survival; however, inflammatory responses can also promote chronic diseases of aging. We hypothesize that global historical increases in life span at older ages are partly explained by reduced lifetime exposure to infection and subsequent inflammation. To begin a test of this hypothesis, we compare C-reactive protein (CRP); levels in two populations with different epidemiological environments: the Tsimane of Bolivia and persons in the United States. High CRP is significantly more prevalent among the Tsimane up through middle age; by age 35, the Tsimane have spent more years with high CRP than have Americans at age 55. Further testing of the links among infection, inflammation, and chronic diseases of aging among the Tsimane requires collection of age-specific indicators of atherosclerosis and cardiac function.

Key Words: Inflammation—Infection—C-reactive protein