Japan currently has approximately 27,000 centenarians who are 100 years old or older. Women account for around 85 percent of this group. Japan has the world's highest longevity rate. What is the secret to the Japanese' long-lasting health? The answer may be in their dietary habit, physical exercise and positive attitude toward life. Thus, centenarians serve as a prime example of successful aging. On the other hand, longevity is associated not only with environment factors but also with genetic factors. PURPOSE: To examine of this hypothesize, we sequenced 192 complete mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) of unrelated Japanese individuals stratified into two equal sized groups by the phenotypes: centenarians and healthy controls. METHODS: Each phenotype had 96 samples over 12 known haplogroups: A, B, C, F, M*, M7a, M7b, D4, D5, G, N9a, and N9b. RESULTS: The frequency of mitochondrial haplogroups D5 and M7b in centenarians was significantly higher than that in controls. On the other hand, the frequency of mitochondrial haplogroup M* in centenarians was significantly lower than that in controls. CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest that mitochondrial DNA polymorphisms were associated with longevity. There is possibility that some mitochondrial DNA polymorphisms are important as candidate genes for physical fitness.

DESCENTE SPORTS SCIENCE Vol.29/THE DESCENTE AND ISHIMOTO MEMORIAL FOUNDATION FOR THE PROMOTION SPORTS SCIENCE