GrimAge
GrimAge is a second-generation epigenetic clock. Lu et al. introduced it in 2019, with Steve Horvath as senior author. Instead of predicting your chronological age, it is trained on time-to-death. It combines DNA-methylation stand-ins for seven plasma proteins (like PAI-1 and GDF-15). It also adds a methylation-based estimate of your smoking pack-years. In multiple cohorts, GrimAge and the updated GrimAge2 (2022) beat earlier clocks. They better predict all-cause death, cardiovascular disease, and cancer. GrimAge is widely used in research. But its clinical use as a diagnostic endpoint is still investigational.
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