How does GlycanAge compare to other biological age tests?

GlycanAge is unique amongst ageing clocks. Unlike other clocks, it integrates genetic, epigenetic and environmental aspects of ageing AND responds to lifestyle interventions. Epigenetic clocks for example don’t respond to caloric restriction or weight loss. GlycanAge does. Our studies demonstrate that lifestyle interventions known to be beneficial for health and ageing, measurably reverse glycan ageing. This makes it an ideal measure for the assessment of longevity interventions.
Telomere shortening for example is the DNA timer that limits the lifespan of a single cell. On an individual cell level, telomeres are an excellent marker of ageing. But, we are all composed of trillions of cells, each of them with a different age and expected lifespan. A large study recently concluded that Telomeres are not a good predictor of age-related health status. Many epigenetic clocks of ageing have recently come to market - all based on Steve Horvath's discovery that some aspects of DNA methylation correlate strongly with chronological age. Epigenetics is a form of cellular memory, a field which has significant biomarker potential. There is little research demonstrating what these epigenetic clocks are actually measuring though. The Horvath clock, with which they correlate, is also too linked to chronological age to be useful. GlycanAge measures composition of the IgG glycome (glycans attached to IgG). The IgG glycome not only changes with age, but also affects inflammation at many levels. Glycans are not only biomarkers, but also functional effectors of ageing. Many studies show accelerated glycan ageing is associated with both unhealthy lifestyle and diseases. In some cases glycans were also shown to be causal for disease development