Association of the mitochondrial DNA haplogroup J with longevity is population specific

Evidences are accumulating on the effects of the variability of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) on manycomplex traits. In particular, mtDNA haplogroup J has been reported to increase the individual chance toattain longevity in northern Italians, Northern Irish and Finns. However, since the genetic contributionto longevity may be population specific, we wanted to verify if haplogroup J does affect longevity alsoin a southern European population having a different genetic and environmental history. We analyseda population sample (883 subjects, 371 males and 521 females; age range 18–108 years) from southernItaly for the presence of haplogroup J. No frequency increase of this mtDNA haplogroup was found in theolder cohorts, suggesting that, in this population, haplogroup J does not play a significant role inlongevity. This finding shows that, as for other genetic factors, the association of mtDNA inheritedvariability with longevity is population specific.