81 people from Italy, over age of 105, studied.

Full genetic work up, first of it's kind for this type of group. Comparison to group of 36 italians with an average age of 68.

Five common genetic changes between two genes called COA1 and STK17A.

The most frequently seen genetic changes were linked to increased activity of the STK17A gene in some tissues.

Regulates cells response to DNA damage, programmed cell death and managing dangerous reactive oxygen species within a cell.... 'important processes involved in the initiation and growth of many diseases such as cancer.'

“Previous studies showed that DNA repair is one of the mechanisms allowing an extended lifespan across species.......We showed that this is true also within humans, and data suggest that the natural diversity in people reaching the last decades of life are, in part, linked to genetic variability that gives semi-supercentenarians the peculiar capability of efficiently managing cellular damage during their life course.”

Also had a much lower burden of mutations in six out of seven genes tested.