Epigenetics is the study of how genes are expressed, without any effect on the underlying DNA sequence. The prefix “epi-” means “on top of” or “beyond”. As such, epigenetics looks at factors that influence gene expression that are not encoded in the DNA sequence itself. Imagine your DNA as a musical score, and epigenetics as the conductor, determining which instruments play and how loudly. Epigenetic modifications are changes to the DNA that regulate whether the genes are turned on or off. These changes can arise from a diverse range of factors, such as environmental influences, lifestyle habits and dietary choices, among others.
One of the most common types of epigenetic modification is DNA methylation. This process involves adding a hydrocarbon group (methyl) to specific regions in the DNA, typically between cytosine and guanine nucleotides. This methylation acts as a molecular flag, attracting proteins that repress gene expression. On the other hand, the absence of methylation can signal for genes to be actively transcribed and translated to proteins. DNA methylation patterns can give you valuable insights into your aging process and various health conditions including risks with cancer, neurological diseases, autoimmune diseases and chronic diseases.
Our epigenetic test, MyTruHealth, examines the positioning and quantity of methyl groups on your DNA, providing valuable insights on alterations affecting your gene expression and their tangible impact on the body, rather than solely focusing on the DNA sequence. These tests empowers you with comprehensive information pertaining to your health status and the potential risk of developing certain diseases. As our understanding of epigenetics grows, epigenetic tests are likely to become even more important in the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of disease.
When your body ages more rapidly than the passage of calendar years, you are undergoing accelerated biological aging. Biological age has emerged as a significant indicator of risk for chronic diseases, neurological functions, as well as mortality and morbidity rates. Fortunately, there are lifestyle and medical interventions that have been proven effective in slowing down, halting, or even reversing the biological aging processes within your body. By measuring your baseline and monitoring changes in your rate of aging, you gain the ability to guide your journey towards anti-aging, health, and overall well-being in the desired direction.
Factors Affecting Biological Age
Start your anti-aging journey by knowing various epigenetics read outs relating to aging.
Based on the Bioage and Pace of Aging results, implement lifestyle interventions.
Retest your pace of aging (the most change-sensitive measurement) to gauge your hard work and intervention effectiveness.
Mounting evidence suggests that Biological Age is a more reliable indicator of overall health and disease vulnerability than chronological age. Consequently, it is crucial to acknowledge the profound influence of aging as the primary risk factor for a range of chronic illnesses. Biological Age measurement captures the alterations in DNA methylation patterns and converts them into a numerical value. This approach enables a straightforward yet comprehensive evaluation of an individual’s overall health.
Ideally, everyone would want their biological age to be younger than their chronological age. This means that they are living a healthy lifestyle that will help them stay healthy and prevent sickness and disease for a longer period of time. Great news awaits! The realm of epigenetics brings hope as it unveils the reversibility of epigenetic changes, including DNA methylation. Yes, you read it right – epigenetic aging is reversible. Now, armed with a direct measure of aging, we hold the key to slowing down the relentless march of biological aging!
General Manager of Invitrocue Singapore
Ms. Susan Chia brings close to 20 years of experience in pharmaceutical and healthcare industry, having held positions in sales and clinical research with Glaxo Wellcome (now GSK), Johnson and Johnson and Covance. Ms. Chia was one of the pioneers in the set up of Contract Research Organisation (CRO) in Singapore and Asia, before the company became a public listed company in NYSE as Covance. Over her 13 years with Covance, she served in various leadership positions, including Client Relationship Director, Administrative Head Singapore, and Director of Clinical Operations, Asia Pacific. In her last position as Director of Clinical Operations, she had responsibilities for Phase II to IV clinical trial management in 12 countries, including Australia, China, Korea and Southeast Asia. Ms. Chia holds a Bachelor of Science degree from the National University of Singapore, with major in Chemistry and Microbiology. She has also received a Gold Award for Graduate Diploma in Marketing from the Marketing Institute of Singapore.
General Manager of Invitrocue Hong Kong
Ms. Emily Cheung possesses more than 15 years of working experience at senior management level in the healthcare industry, with responsibility in strategic planning, directing and overseeing business operations. Prior to Invitrocue, Ms Cheung spent more than a decade at Cordlife, a public listed company in Singapore specialising in cord blood stem cells banking services and healthcare related services, where she was the CEO of the company’s Hong Kong division. With the growth of the business, she later served as Cordlife’s Director of Business Development, overseeing the development of new business opportunities in Hong Kong, Macau and the Philippines.
General Manager of Invitrocue Europe
Ms. Katharina Bernlochner is a senior executive in the healthcare industry, with over 25 years of experience in German and international healthcare systems. As a provider of ideas with a focus on the implementation of new projects, she has established innovative interdisciplinary services in different sectors of medicine. She has also founded her own company for outpatient intensive care. Her career experience includes working for Doctors without Borders (Médecins Sans Frontières ) in Africa and Southeast Asia. Ms. Bernlochner holds a Master’s degree in Nursing Management from the University of Applied Sciences in Hamburg.
Vice President, Operations
Mr. Martin Bach has more than 20 years of experience directing employees in multinational companies. Mr. Bach has led these companies through start-up, survival, turnaround and growth modes. He has spent decades in the medical industries. His understanding of both domestic and international businesses and global distribution channels encompasses manufacturing, wholesale, direct sales and joint ventures. Among his significant previous roles, he served as Managing Director of a German based healthcare and medical device company. An entrepreneur by heart, he then founded his own Company with a dedicated presence in Abu Dhabi, where he gained valuable knowledge on doing business and building relationships in the UAE regions. Mr. Bach holds a Master of Business Administration, International Marketing from the Berufsakademie in Ravensburg (Germany).
CEO of Invitrocue Europe AG
Dr Lindner is a senior executive with significant global experience across a range of industries including healthcare and technology. He was a founding partner of global healthcare company Medi-Globe, a supplier of equipment and services for minimally invasive surgery and urology, as well as hospital supplies. His experience also includes establishment of a private venture capital business, which invested across industries including technology, new media and internet. Most recently, Dr Lindner founded health complete GmbH, a material supply company specializing in highly efficient and biodegradable cleaning product. Dr Lindner has a PhD (Business) from Ludwig-Maximilian University of Munich.
Co-Founder & Executive Director
Dr Steven Fang is Founder and Executive Director of Invitrocue Limited, partner at Clearbridge Accelerator and was the Group CEO of CordLife Ltd. He has been awarded with the World Economic Forum Technology Pioneer Award, Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year for New Enterprise, Spirit of Enterprise and the Asia Pacific Entrepreneurship Award’s Outstanding Entrepreneur Award.
Dr Fang has over two decades of experience in building biotechnology and life sciences companies. Dr Fang was the Group CEO of CordLife Ltd, which he founded in May 2001; the company has since grown with operations in Singapore, Hong Kong, Jakarta, Indonesia, Kolkata, India, and Australia. CordLife was listed on the Australian Stock Exchange in 2004 and spun off a separate entity in 2012, which subsequently was listed on the Singapore Stock Exchange. Prior to CordLife, Dr Fang held various management positions in Becton Dickinson, Baxter Healthcare and Sterling Pharmaceuticals (now part of GSK).
Biological Age is how aging affects you in the past. This report aims to quantify the ageing of our body’s functions and even predict mortality.
Telomere length shortens with age. Progressive shortening of telomere length leads to cells senescence, apoptosis and oncogenic onset of somatic cells, reducing lifespan of an individual. How long is your telomere compared to the general population?
Weight loss can be difficult.Is a calorie-deficient diet the best approach for you?This report tells whether you will lose weight efficiently by cutting down your calorie intake.
Type II diabetes is associated with increases risk of heart, nerve and eyes disease. Reverse your risk to Type II Diabetes before disease onset!
Body weight homeostasis and metabolism are affected by the interplay between environmental, lifestyle, and genetic factors. Are you at higher risk of obesity?
Stem cells provide new cells for the body as it grows and replace specialized cells that are damaged. This report reveals individual stem cell reservoir within the body.
How strong is your immune system? Immune age measures the strength of individual immune system against infection regardless of the chronological age.
Your Pace of Aging now affects your Biological Age in future. Pace of Aging correlates to the rate of age-related decline in system integrity, increased vulnerability to the development of chronic disease, onset of disability and morbidity.