A new article published in Genomic Psychiatry highlights why Brazil may be one of the best, yet often overlooked, places to study people who live to be more than 110 years old.
The Viewpoint, led by Dr. Mayana Zatz and her team at the University of São Paulo, brings together lessons from their long-term research on Brazil’s oldest citizens.
It combines these findings with new discoveries in the biology of supercentenarians—those who live past 110—to show how Brazil’s unique genetic background offers valua…
The basic question is simple: why do only a few people live beyond 110, while most never reach 100? Many studies have tried to answer this, but most of the data comes from groups with similar genetic backgrounds. That means key information from more genetically mixed populations is often missing. This is a big gap in our understanding of longevity.
Mateus Vidigal de Castro, first author of the Viewpoint, explains that this gap limits discovery. People from admixed populations, like Brazil’s, may carry protective genes that don’t appear in studies based on more genetically uniform groups.
Brazil is especially important because of its rich population history. The country’s people come from a blend of Indigenous, African, European, and Asian ancestry.
This mix began with Portuguese colonization in the 1500s, followed by the arrival of about 4 million enslaved Africans, and later waves of immigration from Europe and Japan. As a result, Brazil may have the world’s most genetically diverse population.
In past genetic studies of Brazilians over age 60, researchers discovered millions of genetic variants not seen in other global datasets. In one study alone, they found more than 8 million unique variants, including over 36,000 that may be harmful. Many of these variations came from older adults, including people living in areas with limited healthcare access.
The research team has built a rare and valuable group of participants, including over 160 people aged 100 or older, with 20 of them verified as supercentenarians. These individuals come from a wide range of environments, adding diversity to the study. One famous participant, Sister Inah, was the oldest living person in the world before her death in April 2025 at age 116.
The group also includes the world’s two oldest men. One passed away in late 2024 at age 112, and the other is now 113. This is important because men are usually underrepresented among the oldest people due to higher risks of heart disease and other health issues.
What makes these individuals especially interesting is that many lived without regular access to doctors or modern medical care. Yet, they lived long and healthy lives, often staying mentally sharp and physically independent into extreme old age. This gives scientists a chance to learn how the body can stay strong even without medical help.
One family in the study stands out. A woman aged 110 has nieces who are 100, 104, and 106. The oldest niece was still winning swimming competitions at age 100. This kind of family suggests that genes play a strong role in longevity. In fact, studies show that siblings of centenarians are much more likely to reach very old age themselves.
The team is also studying how supercentenarians’ bodies fight aging. Their immune cells stay active and clean up damaged proteins better than usual, which helps prevent many age-related problems. They also have unusual immune responses, including rare types of T cells that fight infections more effectively.
In one example, a supercentenarian who lived in both the U.S. and Spain had rare genes linked to immune health and cell repair. These included changes in genes like HLA-DQB1 and IL7R. Surprisingly, while this woman followed a Mediterranean diet, Brazil’s oldest participants did not report special diets or eating habits.
Another surprising finding came during the COVID-19 pandemic. Three of Brazil’s supercentenarians caught the virus in 2020, before vaccines were available—and all three survived.
Tests showed strong immune responses, which is unusual for people of such advanced age. This suggests that their immune systems stayed effective even when facing new threats.
Globally, Brazil is becoming a leader in super-long life. Three of the ten longest-living men ever confirmed are Brazilian. Among women, Brazil also ranks high, even above countries like the United States, despite having fewer resources.
Looking ahead, the researchers are using cells from their participants to create lab models. They plan to study how genes, proteins, and immune systems interact in these long-lived individuals. Their goal is not just to repeat earlier studies done in other countries, but to find new biological clues that may help everyone.
Dr. Zatz and her team hope that more global research groups will include populations like Brazil’s, which are often left out of big studies. They argue that understanding longevity in such diverse groups is not only fair—it also helps science get a more complete picture of how people can live longer, healthier lives.
Supercentenarians don’t just show us how long humans can live. They show us how people can stay sharp, strong, and resilient, even after 110. Their stories may hold the key to healthier aging for us all.
If you care about wellness, please read studies about nutrients that could combat inflammation in older people, and essential foods for healthy aging.
For more health information, please see recent studies about the link between processed foods and chronic diseases, and a simple diet change for a healthier life after 65.
The study is published in Genomic Psychiatry.
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