You can see how each profile varies significantly
This profile is a biomarker of the effects of ‘ageing’[i], [ii]. Its usefulness comes in three ways: first if it shifts to a better pattern when inflammation is lower than usual for age, this is indication of an individual who is likely to become a centenarian

Second, if there is a worse pattern ie inflammation higher than usual, this correlates with premature death, autoimmune disease, cardiovascular risk, cancer probability in various sites and the likelihood of diabetes

Can you reverse an abnormal pattern?

Yes: lifestyle modification or in eg ulcerative colitis, specific treatment, can reverse that pattern[i] and success be demonstrated on re-test. Poor patterns in women, perimenopausally, are reversed by HRT[ii].

What is the test?

This is a fingerprick blood sample. It has to be measured in a specialised laboratory outside the UK and is done in batches so the result takes 3-4 weeks.

For those interested - Research into IgG glycosylation and disease

Cancer

Abnormal glycosylation patterns are seen in brain tumours[iii], may be a potential future marker for early breast cancer[iv] are increased in the urine of patients with gastric cancer, pancreatic cancer, cholangiocarcinoma and colorectal cancer [CRC][v]. In CRC, N-glycosylation is potentially a novel prognostic biomarker[vi]. In both small cell and non-small cell lung cancer targeting the protein N-glycosylation of cancer small extracellular vesicles (sEVs or exosomes) may allow detection and characterisation of cancer types and their origins, as well as developing therapeutic strategies[vii].

Inflammatory disease

Abnormal IgG glycosylation is seen in ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease. The markers decline during successful treatment[viii].

Glycan Age and menopause

These results suggest that IgG glycans and consequently also the glycan age are under strong influence of gonadal hormones and that estradiol therapy can prevent the increase of glycan age that occurs in the perimenopausal period^[ix].

The science of the test.

What are glycans

Glycans are complex carbohydrates that have an important role if how the body adapts DNA function without modifying the DNA template. Lauc et al say^[x].:

Our hypothesis is that the invention of glycans was the third revolution in evolution (after the appearance of nucleic acids and proteins). This enabled novel molecular entities that do not need the direct genetic template that proteins and nucleic acids require. Glycans are an epigenetic mechanism that enables adaptive response to environmental changes, and, unlike other epiproteomic modifications, which act as off/on switches, glycosylation significantly enables novel functions. The importance of glycosylation is evident from the fact that nearly all proteins invented after the appearance of multicellular life are composed of both polypeptide and glycan parts.[xi].

How do they work?

Glycans modulate cellular responses¹⁰

.

Surfaces of all eukaryotic cells are covered with a thick layer of complex glycans attached to proteins or lipids. Many cells in our organism can function without the nuclei, but there is no known living cell that can function without glycans on their surface. Anything approaching the cell, being it a protein, another cell, or a microorganism, has to interact with the cellular glycan coat

In some biological systems, like for example AB0 blood groups, glycans act as simple molecular switches that introduce inter-individual variability of cellular surfaces. In other systems, like immunoglobulin glycosylation, they enable new physiological functions, which could not be performed without this complex post-translational ie post DNA level, tool. Immunoglobulin G (IgG) is an excellent model glycoprotein because its glycosylation has been well defined and many important functional effects of alternative IgG glycosylation have been described For example, glycosylation acts as a switch between pro- and anti-inflammatory IgG functionality.

The GlycanAge index combines one nongalactosylated glycan (GP6) and two digalactosylated glycans (GP14 and GP15). This index predicts chronological age in the well, and importantly explains 58% of variation in chronological age and sex. This is impressive compared with other so-called age biomarkers like telomere length where most studies show 15%–25%. After correcting for chronological age, the GlycanAge index correlates strongly with physiological parameters associated with measurements related to biological age[xii]