A blood-based epigenetic clock for intrinsic capacity predicts mortality and is associated with clinical, immunological and lifestyle factors

Abstract

Age-related decline in intrinsic capacity (IC), defined as the sum of an individual’s physical and mental capacities, is a cornerstone for promoting healthy aging by prioritizing maintenance of function over disease treatment. However, assessing IC is resource-intensive, and the molecular and cellular bases of its decline are poorly understood. Here we used the INSPIRE-T cohort (1,014 individuals aged 20–102 years) to construct the IC clock, a DNA methylation-based predictor of IC, trained on the clinical evaluation of cognition, locomotion, psychological well-being, sensory abilities and vitality. In the Framingham Heart Study, DNA methylation IC outperforms first-generation and second-generation epigenetic clocks in predicting all-cause mortality, and it is strongly associated with changes in molecular and cellular immune and inflammatory biomarkers, functional and clinical endpoints, health risk factors and lifestyle choices. These findings establish the IC clock as a validated tool bridging molecular readouts of aging and clinical assessments of IC.