London - Men could have shorter lifespans than women because damage to their Y chromosome leaves them susceptible to cancer and Alzheimer’s disease, scientists say.
The Y chromosome contains the DNA that makes men male and is in almost every cell in the body.
But it can disappear from some blood cells as men get older.
Scientists have linked this to dementia and cancer, which they say may help explain why men tend to die younger than women.
Researchers, from Uppsala University in Sweden, studied more than 3 200 men aged 37 to 96.
Tests showed the Y chromosome to be missing from white blood cells in roughly one in five men.
The older they were, the more common it was. The researchers have shown men with missing Y chromosomes survive half as long as other males if they develop cancer, while Alzheimer’s disease is more common in these men.
The white blood cells form part of the immune system, and it is thought that without their Y chromosome, they struggle to work properly. This could leave the body vulnerable, the European Society of Human Genetics conference in Barcelona heard.
But these men could be identified by blood test and then monitored for health issues.
Researcher Lars Forsberg said widespread testing “could radically decrease male mortality rates, and even perhaps eliminate the difference in life expectancy between the sexes”.
Daily Mail