The InChianti Study is a research and development contract with approved funding running through 2010. InChianti (Invecchiare in Chianti, aging in the Chianti area) is an innovative epidemiologic study of aging in the Tuscany region of Italy that has been designed to evaluate factors contributing to decline in mobility in late life. In a way that no other study has done, InChianti spans the spectrum of factors potentially affecting lower extremity function and walking impairment, including loss of muscle mass and strength, osteoporosis, joint disease, arterial and venous circulation, sub-clinical motor disorders (including adaptation and sensory decline), and chronic inflammation. The population was recruited between 1998 and 2000. Three- and six-year follow-up examinations have been completed, and a nine-year examination is now in progress. Collaborations with investigators around the world have led to the creation of a comprehensive collection of biomarkers that is among the largest in any longitudinal epidemiological study of a representative older population. This collection has made it possible to do innovative research not only on biological factors related to mobility loss, but also on specific diseases and various aspects of the aging process. The research on this study has been very productive with over 100 papers published or in press at this time.
