Early Variations in Immune Aging

Background: Despite an increase in lifespan over the last decades, our healthspan lags behind. In our aging population, it is pressing that we prevent age-related morbidities and associated burden on the health care system. Instead of investigating aging in already aged populations, the currently proposed study aims to elucidate the process of immune aging in relation to biological aging, demographic and lifestyle factors in young and midlife adults, and to identify early biomarkers and pathways associated with fast versus slow immune aging and aging endotypes. Study design: A single-center, observational prospective cohort study in the Netherlands. Participants from priorly established cohorts will be invited to join the EVIA-study. We will obtain demographic and basic clinical data and biological samples (blood and stool) at baseline and after three years, with a short, yearly online questionnaire in between.