HomeLarge Type Edition
HOME ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS

This Article
Right arrow Full Text (PDF)
Services
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Citing Articles
Right arrow Citing Articles via HighWire
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation

Journals of Gerontology Series A: Biological Sciences and Medical Sciences, Vol 55, Issue 1 B49-B53, Copyright © 2000 by The Gerontological Society of America


TWIN STUDY

The contribution of genetic influences to measures of lower-extremity function in older male twins

D Carmelli, M Kelly-Hayes, PA Wolf, GE Swan, LM Jack, T Reed and JM Guralnik
Center for Health Sciences, SRI International, Menlo Park, California 94025, USA. doritc@unix.sri.com

Tests of balance, gait, and endurance were administered to 95 monozygotic (MZ) and 92 dizygotic (DZ), white male twins aged 68 to 79 years who had been born in the United States. Within-twin-pair correlations were calculated for each individual task and for an overall summary performance score. These were subjected to structural equation modeling to determine the contributions of genetic and environmental influences to individual differences in performance scores. MZ intraclass correlations were significant and greater than DZ correlations for the 8-foot walk and the repeated chair stands task, but not for the standing balance task. The heritability of the lower- extremity summary score was 57%, of which 39% was due to additive genetic effects and 18% due to nonadditive effects. In addition, we found that genetic influences contributed primarily to twin similarity in the poorest quartile of performance, whereas shared environmental influences contributed to twin similarity in the best quartile.


This article has been cited by other articles:


Home page
Am. J. Clin. Nutr.Home page
N. S Hopkinson, K. W. Li, A. Kehoe, S. E Humphries, M. Roughton, J. Moxham, H. Montgomery, and M. I Polkey
Vitamin D receptor genotypes influence quadriceps strength in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease
Am. J. Clinical Nutrition, February 1, 2008; 87(2): 385 - 390.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]


Home page
Journals of Gerontology Series A: Biological Sciences and Medical SciencesHome page
D. Melzer, A. J. Hurst, and T. Frayling
Genetic Variation and Human Aging: Progress and Prospects
J. Gerontol. A Biol. Sci. Med. Sci., March 1, 2007; 62(3): 301 - 307.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]


Home page
Journals of Gerontology Series A: Biological Sciences and Medical SciencesHome page
T. M. Frayling, S. Rafiq, A. Murray, A. J. Hurst, M. N. Weedon, W. Henley, S. Bandinelli, A.-M. Corsi, L. Ferrucci, J. M. Guralnik, et al.
An Interleukin-18 Polymorphism Is Associated With Reduced Serum Concentrations and Better Physical Functioning in Older People
J. Gerontol. A Biol. Sci. Med. Sci., January 1, 2007; 62(1): 73 - 78.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]


Home page
Journals of Gerontology Series A: Biological Sciences and Medical SciencesHome page
A. Ortega-Alonso, N. L. Pedersen, U. M. Kujala, S. Sipila, T. Tormakangas, J. Kaprio, M. Koskenvuo, and T. Rantanen
A twin study on the heritability of walking ability among older women.
J. Gerontol. A Biol. Sci. Med. Sci., October 1, 2006; 61(10): 1082 - 1085.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]


Home page
Am J EpidemiolHome page
N. El Haber, K. D. Hill, A.-M. T. Cassano, L. M. Paton, R. J. MacInnis, J. S. Cui, J. L. Hopper, and J. D. Wark
Genetic and Environmental Influences on Variation in Balance Performance among Female Twin Pairs Aged 21-82 Years
Am. J. Epidemiol., August 1, 2006; 164(3): 246 - 256.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]


Home page
Journals of Gerontology Series A: Biological Sciences and Medical SciencesHome page
B. J. Nicklas, J. Mychaleckyj, S. Kritchevsky, S. Palla, L. A. Lange, E. M. Lange, S. P. Messier, D. Bowden, and M. Pahor
Physical Function and Its Response to Exercise: Associations With Cytokine Gene Variation in Older Adults With Knee Osteoarthritis
J. Gerontol. A Biol. Sci. Med. Sci., October 1, 2005; 60(10): 1292 - 1298.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]


Home page
Journals of Gerontology Series A: Biological Sciences and Medical SciencesHome page
D. Melzer, M. G. Dik, G. J. van Kamp, C. Jonker, and D. J. Deeg
The Apolipoprotein E e4 Polymorphism Is Strongly Associated With Poor Mobility Performance Test Results But Not Self-Reported Limitation in Older People
J. Gerontol. A Biol. Sci. Med. Sci., October 1, 2005; 60(10): 1319 - 1323.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]


Home page
J. Appl. Physiol.Home page
S. Pajala, P. Era, M. Koskenvuo, J. Kaprio, A. Tolvanen, E. Heikkinen, K. Tiainen, and T. Rantanen
Contribution of genetic and environmental effects to postural balance in older female twins
J Appl Physiol, January 1, 2004; 96(1): 308 - 315.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]




HOME ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS
Copyright © 2000 by The Gerontological Society of America.