Maria Branyas Morera — born on March 4th, 1907, in San Francisco to Spanish parents — survived two world wars, the Spanish Influenza, a civil war, and, more recently, the pandemic.
From January 17, 2023, until her death in 2024, Branyas was the world’s oldest living person, reaching the remarkable age of 117 years and 168 days. That surpasses the average life expectancy for women living in Catalonia, Spain, where she spent most of her life, by over 30 years. This achievement makes her one of a handful of supercentenarians, a small but growing cohort of individuals who live to celebrate their 110th birthday.
Curiously, despite living well into her twelfth decade, Branyas did not seem to suffer from any age-associated disease. Now, a team of researchers writing in Cell Reports Medicine has published the findings of a comprehensive study examining samples collected from Branyas, offering clues that help explain her exceptional health and surprisingly long lifespan — including a predilection for yogurt.
Describing the results in a press release, lead author Manel Esteller, Head of the Cancer Epigenetics group at the Josep Carreras Leukaemia Research Institute, pointed to a “fascinating duality” that displays “the simultaneous presence of signals of extreme aging and of healthy longevity.”
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A “Fascinating Duality”
Esteller and his team carried out a series of tests on blood, saliva, urine, and stool samples, the majority collected from Branyas when she was 116. This included sequencing the entirety of Branyas’ genome — a process that revealed various structural variants associated with longevity and disease resistance, including those linked to superior immune function and heart health.
The researchers note it is unlikely Branyas’ extraordinarily long lifespan can be attributed to any one specific variant, but “a combination of rare variants” associated with the immune system, cardioprotection, brain activity, and mitochondrial metabolism may have worked together to increase the likelihood of her reaching supercentenarian status.
Additional clues to Branyas’ excellent aging were found in the blood samples, which revealed a highly efficient lipid metabolism — a characteristic that previous research has linked to longevity and a reduced risk of dementia. Further tests revealed her biological clock was more than two decades younger than her chronological age.
And yet, alongside these signals of longevity, there were signals of extreme aging, including an inflammation-prone immune system, an abnormal B cell population, and strikingly short telomeres. As for the latter, the researchers suggest shortened telomeres — aka the protective region of repetitive DNA found at the end of a chromosome — could have helped ward off cancer by limiting the lifespan of potentially malignant cells, providing a possible benefit.
Nature Versus Nurture
While genetic factors suggest Branyas benefited from a certain amount of luck, the researchers say lifestyle factors may also have played a role. As noted in the study, Branyas maintained good sleep habits, consumed a balanced Mediterranean diet, and enjoyed an active social life.
She also regularly consumed yogurt containing probiotics that support the growth of good bacteria in the gut. The researchers describe Branyas’ fierce yogurt habit — in her old age, she ate three portions a day — as an example of a “dietary intervention” associated with healthy aging and longevity.
What Does This Tell Us About Aging?
As the researchers mention themselves, “drawing broadly applicable conclusions from a single subject should be taken with caution.” However, the study does offer intriguing insights into genetic and lifestyle factors that could promote longevity that warrant further study.
What’s more, thanks to Branyas’ ability to avoid disease despite her advanced age, “these findings illustrate how aging and disease can, under certain conditions, become decoupled, challenging the common perception that they are inextricably linked.”
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Article Sources
Our writers at Discovermagazine.com use peer-reviewed studies and high-quality sources for our articles, and our editors review for scientific accuracy and editorial standards. Review the sources used below for this article:
- Cell Reports Medicine. The multiomics blueprint of the individual with the most extreme lifespan
