University of Barcelona researchers analyzed factors that contributed to the long life of Maria Branyas Morera, who died at the age of 117 in August 2024. Photo courtesy of Manel Esteller/HealthDay News
Maria Branyas Morera was the oldest living person in the world when she died at 117 in August 2024, and she passed with one fervent wish.
"Señora Branyas told us: 'Please study me so I can help others,'" Dr. Manel Esteller, chair of genetics at the University of Barcelona School of Medicine, said in a news release. "And she has!"
It turns out Branyas had many things going for her: a healthy lifestyle, beneficial bacteria in her microbiome and genetics that have been linked to longevity, researchers report in the journal Cell Reports Medicine.
"Though we found that healthy aging is a highly individualized process without any one major feature involved -- rather, it is many small factors working together -- we think that being able to show so clearly the characteristics that lead to healthy, as opposed to unhealthy, aging will be advantageous in the future for all, both young and old," Esteller said in a news release.
