Natural Sciences Active Updated Aug 27, 2026
Why do some people keep a sharp memory into their nineties?
The SuperAgers and their protected memory
Where it stands as of Sep 4, 2026
A University of Chicago and TGen team compared 142 SuperAgers, people in their eighties and nineties with memory as sharp as someone decades younger, to 89 cognitively average older adults and found the two groups genetically indistinguishable on the APOE gene and three polygenic risk scores. Studies in Sardinia and in Rugao, China point instead to daily movement, personal autonomy, low stress and social ties. What actually protects those memories is still unidentified.
Researchers at the University of Chicago's HAARC Center and TGen compared the genomes of SuperAgers, people who reach their 80s and 90s with memory as sharp as someone decades younger, to cognitively average older adults and found no genetic difference. The stakes are finding what, if not genetics, protects some older adults' memory so the protection might eventually be studied and shared rather than left to chance.
The story so far
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Aug 27, 2026 Latest
New Atlas reported that Rugao, a Chinese city of 1.3 million people, had 672 residents over age 100 as of February 2026, roughly five times the global average, with researchers and residents pointing to daily physical activity, personal autonomy, low reported stress and steady social engagement as the traits shared with other longevity hotspots.
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Jul 27, 2026
A study of 125 adults aged 71 to 101 in Sardinia's Blue Zone found the region's long-lived residents scored higher on openness, had better coping strategies, and engaged in more frequent hobbies than people living just outside the zone.
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Jul 26, 2026
A University of Chicago HAARC Center and TGen team compared 142 SuperAgers to 89 cognitively average older adults and found the two groups genetically indistinguishable on the APOE gene and three polygenic risk scores, showing SuperAgers' protected memory is not explained by their DNA.
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