The DOI matches its Crossref record; 10 of the 10 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.
Identification of a geographic area characterized by extreme longevity in the Sardinia island: the AKEA study
Open accessAbstract
High prevalence and low female/male ratio for validated centenarians are observed in Sardinia and these findings appear to be thus far unique to this island. Moreover a specific region on the island is characterized by exceptional male longevity. We calculated the extreme longevity index (ELI), defined as the percentage of persons born in Sardinia between 1880 and 1900, who became centenarians. A gaussian smoothing method was used in order to identify the so-called 'Blue Zone', where longevity is concentrated in the central-eastern part of the island and covers all the mountainous areas of central Sardinia. The estimated life expectancy in the 'Blue Zone' is longer than in the remaining territory of the island especially for men and the male to female ratio among centenarians born in this area is 1.35 compared to 2.43 in the rest of Sardinia. The specific mechanism by which persons living in this territory were more likely to reach extreme longevity remains unknown but it is interesting to note that most of the 'longevity hot spots' identified in various regions of the world over the years have been located in mountainous geographical areas even if none of these longevity regions have been fully validated. An alternative and interesting hypothesis is that the high rate of inbreeding determined by frequent marriages between consanguineous individuals and low immigration rates have progressively decreased the variability of the genetic pool and facilitated the emergence of genetic characteristics that protect individuals from diseases that are major causes of mortality particularly in older individuals. Given the exceptionally high prevalence of male centenarians in the 'Blue Zone', it is reasonable to assume that either the environmental characteristics or the genetic factors, or both, exert their favorable effect more strongly in men than in women. Thus, the mechanism involved may be modulated by the hormonal milieu, or may be associated with genes located in the sex chromosomes.
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Citations
Cites
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“The ages of the centenarians previously identified and described in the AKEA study (Deiana et al., 1999) were all confirmed, with only one exception.”
MethodResultInfluentialSelf-citationValidation of Exceptional Longevity
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“Studies on the island of Sardinia reveal a geographic region that is distinguished by unusually high numbers of centenarians who eat a simple Mediterranean diet.(31) The NU-AGE project was designed to determine whether the Mediterranean diet can affect the process of inflammaging, the microbiota, and functional status.”
Metadata
- Authors
- Poulain, M., Pes, G. M., Grasland, C., Carru, C., Ferrucci, L., Baggio, G., Franceschi, C., & Deiana, L.
- Affiliations
- UCLouvain (BE)
- University of Sassari (IT)
- UMR Géographie-cités (FR)
- National Institute on Aging (US)
- University of Padua (IT)
- Istituto Nazionale di Riposo e Cura per Anziani (IT)
- Corresponding author
- Poulain, Michel
- ORCID
- Venue
- Experimental Gerontology
- Publisher
- Elsevier BV
- Published
- 2004-09
- Volume
- 39
- Issue
- 9
- Pages
- 1423-1429
- ISSN
- 0531-5565 (ISSN-L)
- OpenAlex
- W2030134966
- Cited by
- 286
- References
- 10
- Citations by year
- 2026: 16 · 2025: 28 · 2024: 21 · 2023: 12 · 2022: 20 · 2021: 19 · 2020: 15 · 2019: 20 · 2018: 12 · 2017: 20 · 2016: 7 · 2015: 11 · 2014: 15 · 2013: 7 · 2012: 10
- FWCI
- 18.94
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- bronze
- doi.org
- Locations
- Experimental Gerontology (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- HAL (submittedVersion, other-oa)
- Archivio istituzionale della ricerca (Alma Mater Studiorum Università di Bologna) (submittedVersion)
- DIAL (Catholic University of Leuven) (submittedVersion)
- UnissResearch (Università degli Studi di Sassari) (submittedVersion)
- Funders
- Regione Autonoma della Sardegna
- Max-Planck-Institut für demografische Forschung
- National Institutes of Health
- National Cancer Institute (03-SC-NIH-1027)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Demography › Insurance, Mortality, Demography, Risk Management
- Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Aging › Genetics, Aging, and Longevity in Model Organisms
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Epidemiology › Healthcare Systems and Public Health
- Keywords
- exceptional longevity, centenarians, Blue Zones, Sardinia, male longevity, life expectancy, inbreeding, consanguinity, mountainous terrain, sex differences in aging
- MeSH terms
- Aged, Aged, 80 and over, Consanguinity, Female, Geography, Humans, Italy, Life Expectancy, Longevity, Male, Sex Factors, Sex Ratio
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