According to Experts.news, the human body likely does not age at a constant rate: several large-scale studies in recent years have identified periods of particularly intense restructuring of proteins, metabolites, the immune system, and other molecular markers during middle and old age. However, the widely held view of two specific “aging spikes” at approximately ages 44 and 60 now needs to be revised.
A study by Stanford University researchers, published in the journal *Nature Aging* on August 14, 2024, analyzed 108 individuals aged 25 to 75. The researchers collected blood, microbiome samples, and other biomaterials every few months and examined ten types of molecular data—ranging from transcriptomics and proteomics to metabolomics, lipidomics, and cytokines. Initial analysis revealed two distinct periods of change, occurring around ages 44 and 60.
Around age 44, processes related to lipid and alcohol metabolism, the cardiovascular system, skin, and muscles changed particularly noticeably. Around age 60, the authors observed changes in immune regulation, carbohydrate metabolism, kidney function, and a number of metabolic processes.
However, on July 15, 2026, *Nature Aging* added a special editorial note to the publication. Following further review by the authors and independent researchers, the reliability of the portion of the analysis used to identify peaks in molecular changes during specific age periods was called into question. The authors, together with the editorial board, are continuing to assess the scope of the issue and possible corrections.
This means that the claim that “humans age rapidly specifically at ages 44 and 60” cannot currently be considered a reliably established scientific fact.
At the same time, the more general conclusion that biological aging may occur unevenly is supported by a number of independent studies.
As early as 2019, scientists who studied 2,925 blood plasma proteins in 4,263 individuals aged 18 to 95 identified nonlinear changes in the proteome and three periods of intensified remodeling—at approximately 34, 60, and 78 years of age. The study was published in *Nature Medicine*.
The authors of the later Stanford study attributed the discrepancy between the first peak and their findings to, among other things, different protein measurement methods and a different age range of participants. However, both studies pointed to pronounced changes around the age of 60.
Another important finding emerged in 2025.
A study published in the journal *Cell* created a large-scale proteomic atlas of aging in various human tissues. The scientists found that changes in the protein composition of most of the organs studied accelerated noticeably around the age of 50, particularly between the ages of 45 and 55. Blood vessels proved to be among the tissues most sensitive to age.
Thus, this work also supports the idea of a period of accelerated biological remodeling in middle age, although it does not specifically confirm the age of 44.
The authors developed separate “proteomic clocks” for different tissues, since organs within a single person can age at different rates. This is consistent with the current understanding of biological age as a heterogeneous process, during which the condition of the heart, blood vessels, liver, kidneys, or other systems does not necessarily correspond to a person’s chronological age.
Additional data became available as early as 2026. In March, researchers published an analysis of plasma proteins from 50,506 UK Biobank participants in the journal *Cell Metabolism*. They examined 2,911 proteins and identified 1,339 proteins associated with signs of frailty.
When analyzing age-related changes, the scientists observed a two-phase pattern: the most pronounced periods of proteomic remodeling associated with frailty occurred around ages 50 and 63.
This is particularly interesting when compared to previous studies: while the exact figures vary, several independent datasets again point to an average age of about 45–55 years and the period after age 60 as stages of significant molecular remodeling in the body.
A separate large-scale study in *Nature Medicine* analyzed data from 45,441 UK Biobank participants and 2,897 plasma proteins, after which the researchers constructed proteomic “aging clocks.”
It turned out that the difference between proteomic and chronological age is associated with the subsequent risk of disease and death. A higher calculated biological age was associated, in particular, with an increased risk of dementia, Alzheimer’s disease, chronic kidney disease, ischemic heart disease, and type 2 diabetes—even after accounting for a range of other risk factors.
The study confirms a broader concept: what matters is not so much a specific birthday—after which a person supposedly begins to age faster—as the individual rate of change in various bodily systems.
The initial study from Stanford University had several significant limitations, which the authors themselves pointed out even before the editorial note was published.
Only 108 people participated in the study, and there were just eight participants in the 25-to-40-year-old group. The median follow-up period was only 1.7 years, although the longest period reached 6.8 years.
Therefore, a significant portion of the age-related differences was actually determined by comparing people of different ages, rather than by observing how the same participants reached ages 40, 50, or 60. The authors explicitly pointed out this aspect of the study and the limitations of extrapolating the results to the entire population.
Following an editorial note in *Nature Aging*, this limitation becomes particularly significant.
The body of research does not yet allow us to identify a universal age at which every person’s body experiences a specific “ageing leap.”
Various studies have identified the most pronounced changes at approximately 34, 44, 50, 60, 63, and 78 years of age, with the results depending on the molecules and tissues studied, the analytical methods used, and the composition of the study participants.
However, a pattern that recurs in several independent studies points to two fairly broad periods of heightened biological restructuring: midlife—approximately ages 45–55—and the onset of old age after age 60.
Therefore, the most accurate conclusion from current research is not that a person necessarily “ages in a sudden leap” at a specific year of life, but rather that the rate of molecular and functional aging of various bodily systems changes over time and varies significantly among individuals.
Studies of the biological clock provide further confirmation of the clinical significance of this approach: molecular age can differ markedly from chronological age and, in several large cohorts, is associated with future risks of chronic diseases and mortality.
When entering new markets, Ukrainian exporters often focus on the product, price, certification and logistics. However, it is also important for a foreign buyer to understand exactly which company it is entering into a contract with, who owns it, how long it has been operating and whether it can fulfil long-term obligations.
An international business reputation is shaped not only through marketing. Foreign banks, distributors, retail chains and corporate buyers may use external business databases to verify a supplier. If information about a Ukrainian company is incomplete, inconsistent or outdated, this may raise additional questions even before negotiations begin.
“An exporter should look at itself through the eyes of the buyer. It may be obvious to a Ukrainian company that it is genuinely operating and has production facilities, a team and customers. For a partner abroad, this must be confirmed by data. A transparent international business profile lowers the information barrier and helps move more quickly from an introduction to a contract,” said Maksym Urakin, Director of Development and Marketing at Interfax-Ukraine, Head of the D&B–Interfax-Ukraine business division and Candidate of Economic Sciences.
It is advisable to check how the company’s legal name, address, management, ownership structure, industry classification and other basic characteristics are presented in international sources. Particular attention should be paid to the consistency of its English-language name in contracts, on its website, in banking documents and in international databases.
For an exporter, this is important not only during the first transaction. A company profile may be used when establishing a credit limit, insuring trade risk, opening an account, connecting to a procurement platform or assessing a supplier by a major corporate customer.
Dun & Bradstreet provides international companies with tools for business identification and analysis. Through D&B–Interfax-Ukraine, Ukrainian enterprises can work with international business data and check how their corporate information appears to potential partners abroad.
Transparency does not replace a competitive price or product quality, but it reduces uncertainty for the buyer. In a market where suppliers compete not only on product but also on reliability, this becomes a separate component of export competitiveness.
Dun & Bradstreet is an international provider of business data and analytical solutions whose history began in 1841. D&B works with data on companies worldwide and provides tools for business identification, counterparty verification, assessment of credit and commercial risks, compliance and supply chain management.
The official representative of Dun & Bradstreet in Ukraine is the Interfax-Ukraine News Agency. The specialised D&B–Interfax-Ukraine division provides Ukrainian companies with access to international business data, helps them verify foreign counterparties and work with D&B tools.
The Ukrainian Embassy in Germany commented on the new rules for obtaining temporary protection in European Union countries, noting that Ukrainians, regardless of gender, must have proof of having legally crossed the Ukrainian border.
“To minimize potential problems when applying for temporary protection in EU member states, Ukrainian citizens—regardless of gender or age—are advised to obtain a stamp or mark in their passport from Ukrainian border guards confirming their border crossing and departure from Ukraine when leaving the country,” the Facebook post states.
For those Ukrainians who are already abroad and need official information regarding the date and fact of their border crossing, there is an option to request the necessary documents through the Main Center for Processing Special Information of the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine. Additional clarifications on this matter will be published shortly on the official websites of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine and its diplomatic missions.
As previously reported, the European Union has sent recommendations to member states regarding updated rules for extending temporary protection for Ukrainians, which include denying status to Ukrainian citizens subject to military service.
As emphasized by the European Commission, the new rules apply to all Ukrainian citizens regardless of gender.
Oleksandr Gavrysh has been appointed director of Lavina Mall, replacing Dmytro Lashin in this position, according to OpenDataBot.
As previously reported by Dmytro Lashyn, CEO of Lavina Mall and Blockbuster Mall, his contract with Mandarin Plaza Group ended after eight years; the decision not to renew it was mutual. Inna Dzyadzin, who was responsible for leasing at Lavina Mall, Mandarin Plaza, Blockbuster Mall, and Ocean Mall, also announced the end of her contract after nine years with Mandarin Plaza Group.
“We will introduce the new management team shortly. We will share our plans for the group’s further development later,” Alexander Chernitsky, director of the Mandarin Plaza Group, told the Interfax-Ukraine news agency. He added that the group’s asset in the Petrivka district of Kyiv (Book Market LLC) is currently the most pressing issue: “Almost everything there has been destroyed. We have not yet fully assessed the full extent of the damage.”
Mandarin Plaza Group is a developer and management company engaged in the operational management of commercial real estate in Ukraine. It manages the following completed projects: Mandarin Plaza, Lavina Mall, and Blockbuster Mall; Ocean Mall is in its final stages of construction (with a total area exceeding 940,000 square meters); and seven projects are currently under development.
In the first half of 2026, foreign citizens purchased 51,627 residential properties in Spain, which is approximately 4% more than during the same period last year and marks the highest figure in the history of relevant statistics from Spanish registries.
The second quarter proved to be the most active: foreigners concluded more than 26,8 thousand transactions, and their share of all registered housing purchases reached 15.98%—a historic high, according to data from the Colegio de Registradores de España.
At the same time, the overall Spanish housing market, on the contrary, cooled off somewhat in the second quarter. The number of transactions fell by 5.7% compared to the previous quarter—to 167,934 thousand, with sales of new-construction properties dropping by 11.5% to 34,919 thousand. Thus, foreign demand strengthened against the backdrop of a decline in overall buyer activity.
British citizens remained the largest group of foreign buyers in the first half of the year. They purchased 3,567 properties, although the number of transactions fell by approximately 10% year-over-year.
Dutch citizens came in a close second—with 3,489 purchases, a 12% increase compared to the first half of 2025. The gap between the two largest groups was just 78 transactions. In the second quarter alone, British buyers closed 1,843 deals, while Dutch buyers closed 1,830.
Official statistics for the second quarter show that British buyers accounted for 6.99% of all foreign transactions, while Dutch citizens accounted for 6.94%. Germans came in third with a 6.11% share.
Germany retained its third place among the largest foreign markets, although demand from German buyers declined slightly over the first half of the year—by approximately 2%. At the same time, the number of purchases by Italian citizens rose by 11%, by Poles—also by 11%, by French citizens—by 3%, and by Irish citizens—by 6%. Belgian demand, on the other hand, fell by approximately 16%.
Thus, the structure of foreign demand in Spain is becoming increasingly diversified. Just ten years ago, British buyers were significantly ahead of other nationalities, whereas now the gap between the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Germany, and the next group of European buyers has narrowed considerably. In the first quarter of 2026, for example, British and Dutch buyers accounted for 6.82% and 6.56%, respectively, of foreign purchases.
The most detailed official report from the Colegio de Registradores for the first quarter of 2026 shows that Ukrainians ranked 10th among foreign buyers, accounting for 3.08% of all foreign real estate transactions; Ukrainian citizens made approximately 765 purchases over the three-month period.
In terms of the number of transactions at the start of the year, Ukrainians trailed behind the British, Dutch, Moroccans, Germans, Italians, French, Romanians, Poles, and Belgians, but outpaced citizens of China, Sweden, Ireland, the U.S., and Russia.
By comparison, Chinese nationals accounted for 2.69% of foreign purchases, while Russians accounted for only 1.44%. Thus, the share of Ukrainians was more than twice that of Russians.
The full official report for the first half of the year, broken down by nationality, has not yet been presented in the registrars’ brief press release; therefore, the exact number of purchases made by Ukrainians over the six-month period should be interpreted with caution. If the share remains at around 3%, this could amount to approximately 1,500 transactions for January–June; however, this is an estimated figure and not a separately published official statistic.
In support of these statistics, Ukraine’s largest international real estate agency—HomiUm—notes a steady increase in demand for real estate in Spain and confirms the long-term investment potential of this market.
According to the company’s CEO, Artur Brazilevsky: “One in five of our agency’s clients buys real estate specifically in Spain.”
The opposite trend is observed among Russian citizens. In the first half of the year, Russians purchased fewer than 1,000 properties, and the number of transactions fell by more than 20% year-over-year.
In the second quarter, the share of foreign buyers reached 32.27% in the Balearic Islands and 31.03% in the Valencian Community. At the same time, the share of foreign buyers increased in all of the country’s autonomous communities.
In the first quarter, a high concentration of foreign demand was also observed in the Canary Islands—22.78% of transactions—and in the Region of Murcia—21.73%. In the province of Alicante, foreigners accounted for about 44.7% of home sales, and in Málaga, more than a third.
Overall, over the past 12 months, foreign citizens have purchased approximately 99,400 homes in Spain, meaning the market has come very close to the 100,000 mark for foreign transactions per year.
The growth in international demand is occurring alongside a sharp rise in real estate prices. The average registered price of housing in the second quarter reached a new all-time high of 2,487 euros per square meter, increasing by 2.4% quarter-over-quarter and by 9.2% year-over-year. The resale index showed even more significant year-over-year growth—16.7%.
Thus, despite a decline in the total number of transactions in Spain, foreign demand continues to strengthen. At the same time, the market is becoming less dependent on traditional British and German buyers: the role of the Netherlands, Poland, and a number of other European countries is growing, while Ukrainians remain among the most prominent nationalities in the Spanish real estate market.
Brazilevsky, FOREIGNER, Homium, HOUSING, REAL ESTATE, SPAIN, UKRAINE
Local budgets received 28.8 billion UAH in land tax revenues for January–July 2026, which is 13% higher than the figure for the same period in 2025 (25.5 billion UAH).
According to a report published by the State Tax Service (STS) on its website on Thursday, Dnipropetrovsk Oblast led in the volume of revenues to local budgets, with taxpayers contributing 5.3 billion UAH. Significant revenues were also received by the budgets of Kyiv (4 billion UAH), Odesa Oblast (2.5 billion UAH), and Lviv Oblast (2.1 billion UAH).
Land tax is a mandatory local tax paid by owners of land plots, land shares, and permanent land users. For individuals, tax assessments are issued by tax authorities, and payment must be made within 60 days of receiving the tax assessment notice. Legal entities calculate the tax themselves and file returns annually by February 20.
Land tax exemptions are available to retirees, individuals with Group I and II disabilities, war veterans, large families, and individuals affected by the Chernobyl disaster. The exemption applies within the established limits on land plot area. The State Tax Service emphasizes that the obligation to pay the tax remains with the owner even if no notice is received, and the status of payments can be checked through the taxpayer’s online account.
