In 1950, when Marybeth Solinski was born, a diagnosis ofDown syndrome was practically a death sentence.

Children with the condition often died before their 10thbirthday.

Yet Solinski, at 59, has outlived her parents. She has evenjoined AARP.

Her longevity illustrates the dramatic progressfor people with Down syndrome. Thanks to bet-ter medical care, the average life expectancy fora child with Down syndrome is now 60 years,according to the National Down Syndrome Soci-

ety, which estimates that about 400,000 people are living withthe condition in the USA.

As they live longer, adults with Down syndrome — who havean extra copy of chromosome 21 — are teaching scientists aboutthe genetic roots of aging, says Ira Lott, head of pediatric neurol-ogy at the University of California-Irvine School of Medicine.

Scientists today are searching this chromosome, which con-tains only about 200 of the body’s roughly 20,000 genes, to

Coverstory

Aging with Down syndromeGene studiesreveal that theprocess isfaster but oftenprotective

By Liz SzaboUSA TODAY

Please see COVER STORY next page u

By Anne Ryan, USA TODAY

Celebration of life: Marybeth Solinski gets ready to blow out the candles on her 59th birthday cake last fall with her niece Sarah Gaziano, 22.

Photo courtesy of Solinski family

Family portrait: Marybeth Solinski,top, with her sisters Lee Cornell, left,and Paulette Solinski.

Aging caregiversare again‘pioneers,’ 7DLife

A better

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'Life

SECTION D

Monday, March 22, 2010

New films in town no match for ‘Alice’Johnny Depp and Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonder-

land remains No. 1 at the box office. The movie tookin $34.5 million to keep the top spot for a third con-secutive weekend. Its domestic haul increased to$265.7 million after only 17 days in theaters. Aliceeasily beat a rush of new movies led by the familyfilm Diary of a Wimpy Kid, which opened at No. 2with $21.8 million. The Jennifer Aniston and GerardButler action comedy The Bounty Hunter landedat No. 3 with $21 million. Jude Law and ForestWhitaker’s action thriller Repo Men was No. 4 withan opening of $6.2 million. The romantic comedyShe’s Out of My League rounded out the top fivewith $6 million. Final figures are due today.

Jeff Bridges arrives on disc in April . . .Did you miss Jeff

Bridges’ Oscar-winningperformance as boozy,broken-down countrysinger Bad Blake in CrazyHeart? You have anotherchance to see it whenthe DVD ($29.98) andBlu-ray Disc ($39.99) ofthe film are releasedApril 20. Among addedfeatures are deletedscenes and alternatemusic cuts.

. . . and Celine Dion lands in early MayCeline Dion fans can mark their calendars for May

4. That’s when a DVD and Blu-ray Disc of the docu-mentary film Celine: Through the Eyes of the Worldand Taking Chances World Tour: The Concert, a newDVD/CD of live performances from Dion’s worldtour, arrives. Eyes of the World’s home edition willoffer an hour’s worth of footage not seen in themovie’s limited run in February. A deluxe two-DVDset featuring the movie and the concert will beavailable for $34.99 at the singer’s online shop. Visitcelinedion.com for details.

Nastia Liukin leaps into girls apparelGymnast Nastia Liukin,

20, is all for girl power. Liu-kin, who won five medals atthe Summer Olympics in2008, is joining forces withWarner Bros. ConsumerProducts for a line of girlsmerchandise. The Supergirlby Nastia collection, for girlsages 8-12, will be sold atJCPenney stores and onjcp.com beginning July 20.Products will cost $20 to$38 and will include dresses

and tunics, knit pants and signature SupergirlT-shirts. “The Supergirl S-Shield is a unique andiconic symbol that has inspired this collection,”Liukin said in a statement. “I believe it will do thesame for girls who wear it.”

By Lorena Blas with staff and wire reportsE-mail USATCMlifeline@usatoday.com

Warner Bros.

Liukin: Messageof empowerment.

USATODAYSnapshots®

By Steve Jones and Veronica Salazar, USA TODAY

202,000

155,000

154,000

153,000

140,000

Source: Nielsen SoundScan for week ending March 14

Topmusic downloadsBreak Your Heart

Taio Cruzfeaturing Ludacris

Imma BeBlack Eyed Peas

Hey, Soul SisterTrain

Nothin' On YouB.o.B. featuringBruno Mars

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For entertainment news as it happens,visit the Lifeline Live blog at life.usatoday.com.

Lifeline

‘Dancing’ with . . . South bySouthwestErin, Maksim

and the other10 couples, 4D

Festivals, celebs,1,981 bands, 8D

Courtney Love by Getty ImagesErin Andrews and Maksim Chmerkovskiy by ABC

Today’s puzzlesPage 5D

The next time you’re tempted to re-fer to some reality fame-seeker as a“star,” think of Edie Falco and refrain.

To be sure, it’s an insult to even themost minimally talented actor to belumped in with poseurs whose onlyclaim to public-figure status is barhop-ping, hot-tubbing, grandstanding andotherwise mismanaging a made-for-TV version of their lives.

But to watch Falco’s gorgeouslynuanced star turn in Showtime’s won-derful Nurse Jackie is to realize that anyword that can be used to describeboth her and some camera-hog celeb

wannabe on someTV Dancing showis a word that haslost all meaning.

Jackie has certified Falco’s rank as astar of the first magnitude, through aperformance that is beautifully spareand completely free of all visible signsof vanity. Falco allows us to see straightinto the heart of this funny, angry, ded-icated, addicted nurse and mother,and that includes showing us thingsJackie herself may not know are there.

Jackie’s life has changed, though notas drastically as last season’s cliffhang-er implied. Last year she maintained a

rigid separation between her personaland professional lives, and betweenher loving and much-wronged hus-band, Kevin (Dominic Fumusa), andher equally loving boyfriend, Eddie(Paul Schulze). Those walls have beenbreached, in part by Eddie, but in partalso by Jackie’s own desire to sharemore of herself with co-workers.

Her co-workers have changed, too,mostly for the better. Zoey (MerrittWever) has gained a private life andconfidence, while Dr. O’Hara (Eve Best)is about to gain an unexpected roman-tic partner. Sadly, Haaz Sleiman’sMo-Mo has departed, but the newcharacter in his place — Arjun Gupta’srecovering addict Sam — is better posi-tioned as an antagonist for Jackie.

The best change may be the new re-spect shown to Anna Deavere Smith’sMrs. Akalitus, who too often last sea-

son was used for cheap comic relief.This year she’s more grounded, andwhile she’s still Jackie’s supervisor,she’s no longer her enemy or foil.

What’s remarkable is the fine bal-ance producer/writers Linda Wallemand Liz Brixius maintain between thecomic and tragic. Jackie can be a darkshow, and it’s going to get darker. Butthere isn’t an episode that doesn’tleave you yearning to see the next.

There also isn’t a performance thatdoesn’t work, from the kids to NurseThor (Stephen Wallem) to the nowtweet-obsessed Dr. Cooper (Peter Faci-nelli). But it all revolves around Falco,who stays present and real in everymoment, with no discernable fuss. It’sa TV performance for the ages — andit’s a reminder that for most other peo-ple on TV, the term “star” is too much.

For Falco, it may not be enough.

Edie Falco a true star in ‘Jackie’Second season bringschanges for the betterNurse JackieShowtime, tonight, 10 ET/PTeeee out of four

By Phil Caruso, Showtime

Personal,professional:Edie Falco starsas NYC emer-gency roomnurse JackiePeyton. Domi-nic Fumusa isher husband,Kevin, ownerof a neighbor-hood bar.

TV previewBy Robert Bianco

3-Dclashof thetheatertitans,3D

Top, Disney/Pixar; above, Warner Bros. Pictures

Sam Worthington asPerseus in Clash of theTitans; Woody (voiced byTom Hanks) in Toy Story 3

ScreeningShoWest

Daily health and diet tipson your cellphoneSend a textmessage to44636 (4INFO)withBEWELL.

DROP BY DROP WE CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCEBuy Crystal Light today and join us in supporting World Water Day.

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2D · MONDAY, MARCH 22, 2010 · USA TODAY

learn why people with Downsyndrome suffer disproportion-ately from some health prob-lems, such as Alzheimer’s dis-ease, but are spared many others,such as heart attacks, strokes andcertain types of cancer.

By studying adults with Downsyndrome, researchers hope tofind new ways to combat dis-eases of aging in the larger pop-ulation as well, Lott says.

“It’s an interesting detectivestory,” says Lott, head of the sci-ence advisory board of the Na-tional Down Syndrome Society.“People with Down syndromeare unique when it comes tomany aspects of aging.”

Aging troubles start early

People with Down syndrometend to age prematurely as theydevelop conditions such asmenopause, brittle bones, arthri-tis, hearing loss, wrinkles andsagging skin about two decadesearlier than usual, says Brian Chi-coine, medical director of theadult Down syndrome center atAdvocate Lutheran General Hos-pital in Park Ridge, Ill., the leadingcenter of its kind.

“People say they seem to ageovernight,” says Dennis McGuire,director of psychosocial servicesat the same center. “They sud-denly develop wrinkles and grayhair.”

Solinski, for example, wears abrace on one leg and hearing aidsin both ears, and she has had twocorneal transplants. “She’s morelike a 79-year-old than a 59-year-old,” says her sister, Lee Cornellof Illinois.

Yet researchers suspect thatthis unique genetic profile alsoprotects people with Down syn-drome from many commonailments. A growing number ofresearchers are asking:uWhat protects their hearts?Half of babies with Down syn-

drome are born with correctableheart defects, and most adultswith Down syndrome are over-weight with high cholesterol. De-spite these risks, however, peoplewith Down syndrome virtuallynever develop high blood pres-sure, heart attacks or hardeningof the arteries, Lott says. Doctorsare still trying to learn why.uWhy don’t they get cancer?Doctors once believed that

people with Down syndromedidn’t live long enough to devel-op cancer, says Sandra Ryeom, aresearcher at University of Penn-sylvania School of Medicine inPhiladelphia

Yet, with the exception of arare pediatric leukemia, evenelderly adults with Down syn-drome rarely develop solid tu-mors, such as those of the breastor lung.

Last May, Ryeom and her col-leagues found genes on the 21stchromosome that inhibit thegrowth of blood vessels neces-sary for tumor growth. Gettingan extra copy of these genes, andpossibly others, may help thebody keep cancers in check bydepriving them of blood, shesays.

Researchers already are tryingto develop anti-cancer treat-ments based on genes found onchromosome 21, says RogerReeves of Johns Hopkins Univer-sity School of Medicine.uWhat protects their eyes?Although people with Down

syndrome are at higher risk forcataracts, they rarely develop aform of blindness called maculardegeneration, caused by an over-growth of blood vessels in theretina, Ryeom says. Doctors sus-pect that the same genes that re-strict blood vessel growth in tu-mors may also prevent abnormalblood vessel growth in the eye.

A link to Alzheimer’s?

uWhy do Down syndromepatients develop early Alzheim-er’s disease?

Adults with Down syndromeappear to develop the brainplaques and tangles characteris-tic of Alzheimer’s disease veryearly in life — even as young as 3or 4 years old. For decades, how-ever, their brains also appear torepair and compensate for thedamage, says scientist ElizabethHead of the University of Ken-tucky’s Sanders-Brown Center onAging.

“Their brains may be clearingthe plaques,” says Head, who isnow recruiting Down syndromepatients for a study on biomark-ers of Alzheimer’s. “As they getolder, this protective processslows down.”

By age 40 to 45, virtually ev-eryone with Down syndrome hasthese plaques and tangles, al-though only 12% have dementia,Lott says. By age 65, up to 75% ofpeople with Down syndromehave dementia.

Significantly, doctors havefound a gene that increases therisk of Alzheimer’s, called APP, onthe 21st chromosome, Lott says.The gene, called amyloid precur-sor protein, is involved in the cre-ation of the brain plaques seen inAlzheimer’s patients. People whoinherit mutated copies of thesegenes may develop Alzheimer’sdisease decades earlier than usu-al, says William Mobley, a neuro-science professor at the Univer-sity of California-San Diego.

Yet not all people with Downsyndrome succumb. One of Chi-

coine’s patients lived to 83 with-out dementia.

Solinski, of Chicago, loveslearning so much that she takesflash cards on vacation. She poresover children’s encyclopediasand Nancy Drew novels. She islearning to cook, she says, to fol-low in the footsteps of her moth-er, who died in August at 92. And,she says, “I want to be a greatreader like my father.”

And Brooklyn resident EdwardBarsky is still healthy and inde-pendent at 73, living in a grouphome and navigating public

transportation on his own, sayshis sister, Vicki Ploscowe.

“He’s still going strong,” saysPloscowe, of Manhattan.

If researchers could learn whatprotects certain people, theymight be able to develop a thera-py to prevent Alzheimer’s — bothin those with and those withoutDown syndrome, Head says.

‘No other population’ like this

People with Down syndromepresent doctors with a rare op-portunity to watch the disease

progress, Lott says.“There’s no other population

where you can really study this,”Lott says. Although some peoplewithout Down syndrome carry agene that increases their risk ofearly dementia, “you don’t knowwho in the general population isgoing to come down with spo-radic Alzheimer’s. With Downsyndrome, you know that virtu-ally 100% of them will haveplaques.”

For example, doctors don’t yetknow exactly how an extra copyof chromosome 21 causes or pre-

vents disease, Lott says. It’s pos-sible that getting a 50% larger“dose” of a gene affects thebody’s susceptibility to a disease,he says. Or, it’s possible that theextra genetic material simplymakes the entire genome moreunstable.

Reeves says he’s grateful to theDown syndrome community forteaching scientists so much.

“If it weren’t for people withDown syndrome having fewertumors,” Reeves says, “we neverwould have thought to look foranything like this.”

Cover story

Down research may unlock secrets of agingContinued from 1D

Pregnancy risksThe incidence of Downsyndrome increases with themother’s age. But becauseyounger women have mostof the babies, 80% of childrenwith Down syndrome are bornto women under 35.

BirthsThe prevalence of Downsyndrome at birth increasedmore than 31% from 1979 to2002, partly because of anincrease in older mothers,according to a December studyfrom the Centers for DiseaseControl and Prevention.

Life spansBetter medical care is allowingpeople with Down syndrometo live much longer.Average life span:

25 years

60 years

1983

2010

Down syndromevital statistics

Source: National Down Syndrome Society

Photos by Anne Ryan, USA TODAY

Home and family: Marybeth Solinski tends to a simmering pot in the kitchen with her sister Paulette Solinski.

Always learning: Solinski, at home with her sister Lee Cor-nell, loves to learn. She even takes flash cards on vacation.

Everyday living: Solinski picks out some apples at the grocery store near her house in Chicago. She is learning to cook, she says,to follow in the footsteps of her mother, who died recently at age 92. She also likes to read, like her father.

Body and soul: Solinski receives Communion from Marlow Comisky, a Eucharistic minister from anearby Catholic church who comes to her house once a week.

“It’s an interesting detectivestory. People with Downsyndrome are unique whenit comes to many aspectsof aging.”

— Ira Lott, head of the science advisory board,National Down Syndrome Society