May 20,2013 02:01:02

Why women live longer___Women live longer than men partly because their immune systems age more slowly, a study suggests. As the body's defences weaken over time, men's increased susceptibility to disease shortens their lifespans, say Japanese scientists. Tests of immune function could give an indication of true biological age, they report in Immunity & Ageing journal. The immune system protects the body from infection and cancer, but causes disease when not properly regulated. The Japanese study set out to investigate the controversial question of whether age-related changes in the immune system could be responsible for the difference in average life expectancy between men and women. Prof Katsuiku Hirokawa of the Tokyo Medical and Dental University and colleagues analysed blood samples from 356 healthy men and women aged between 20 and 90. They measured levels of white blood cells and molecules called cytokines which interact with cells of the immune system to regulate the body's response to disease. In both sexes, the number of white blood cells per person declined with age as expected from previous studies. However, closer examination revealed differences between men and women in two key components of the immune system - T-cells, which protect the body from infection, and B-cells, which secrete antibodies.

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Baljit Balli

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Babushahi.com

A veteran Media personality of 31 years Baljit Balli began his career as journalist with The Punjabi Tribune. Today he is regarded as an objective analyst of important social, economic, cultural, political and environmental developments in the region. Baljit Balli was editorial advisor with PTC Television Network till Oct.2011. He hosted a talk show "Tirchhi Nazar" for the channel. He is also working as Punjab Correspondent for OMNI B C T V Channel (Earlier Channel m ) Vancouver, since Oct. 2007. He was a senior journalist with the Ajit group of newspapers and headed its Chandigarh office for a long span of 25 years from 1984 to 2009.

Balli has been writing an Edit page weekly column in Ajit titled "Tirchhi Nazar" since 1995 till the Aug 27,2009. It has been a very popular column as evident from its reproduction in many overseas Newspapers and Web-Magazines.Now Balli has diversified and writing weekly column Tirchhi Nazar in Dainik Bhaskar,Chandigarh in Hindi He has done political commentary for Air India Radio, Doordarshan, Zee TV, Sahara TV, and many media organizations based in Canada and UK. He is a regular contributor of Vancouver-based "Indo-Canadian Times" and many overseas Punjabi newspapers and online Web Portals. Some of the awards won by him include Shiromani Punjabi Pattarkar Purskar, 1996; Baba Farid Purskar, 1992; and Giani Hira Singh Dard Memorial Purskar, 1995.