Growth hormone receptor deficiency (GHRD) doesn’t sound good. Who wants to be deficient in anything? In this case, it’s associated with a condition called Laron syndrome, which causes short stature, among other traits. You may be surprised to learn that it could also reduce your chances of developing cardiovascular disease (https://longevity.technology/news/study-finds-potential-cardiovascular-benefits-in-rare-longevity-mutation/).
Well, let’s not get ahead of ourselves. So far, most of our evidence has come from studies on mice. They seem to suffer less from age-related disease generally when they have the GHRD gene, which in turn contributes to as much as a 40% increase in their longevity. Of course, mice and humans are not the same. That’s why it’s important that we’re now trying to investigate just what the gene means for humans.
Laron syndrome isn’t particularly well-known. There are only about 250 people with this condition in the world, and most of them belong to specific populations. For example, it’s more common in those of Jewish descent, which may explain why there are relatively large numbers in Israel. An even higher density of cases can be found in Ecuador, particularly Lojas Province, where communities of Sephardic Jews who had been forced to convert to Christianity formed part of the Spanish Conquest.
In addition to short stature (usually between 4 feet and 4’6″), Laron syndrome is associated with distinctive facial abnormalities. People with Laron syndrome also tend to have lower blood sugar and have a much lower risk of developing diabetes, despite being more likely to be obese. They’re also less likely to develop cancer and may have better memory and cognition than people without the condition.
So, we know that despite the deficiency in its name, GHRD can have health benefits. Researchers decided to explore further, studying 24 people with GHRD and using 27 of their relatives without the gene as a control group. The study took place in both Ecuador and Los Angeles. It found that the people with the GHRD mutation didn’t just have lower blood sugar, but also lower blood pressure, insulin resistance and artery thickness. Even though their LDL cholesterol seemed high, they didn’t have as many of the plaques associated with atherosclerosis. All in all, that means fewer cardiovascular risk factors.
It’s hard to draw conclusions with such a small sample, but they’re interesting results.
