A collaboration between researchers at the University of Sheffield and Budapest Zoo sees an aging gorilla walk again with ease. Will this treatment be fruitful for humans?
Scientists at the university of sheffield.
Liesel, the elderly matriarch of the Budapest Zoo, had been struggling to walk on her left leg, signaling a possible battle with arthritis. This marked the initiation of a unique collaboration between veterinary expertise and cutting-edge science to alleviate the suffering of the aging primate.
The research paper reviews the potential benefits of marine plasmalogens, a type of glycerophospholipid, in combating age-related diseases like Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s. These compounds, abundant in marine resources, could improve lipid metabolism and reduce oxidative stress, offering a new avenue for improving the quality of life in aging populations.
Naked mole rats are rodents that are about the size of a mouse with a key difference, aside from having no fur — they’re extremely long-lived — reaching ages of around 40 years old. For comparison, lab mice live an average of about three and a half years. To explain their extensive lifespans, researchers have sought to pinpoint how naked mole rats evade the onset of age-related diseases like cancer. In doing so, they’ve identified a form of gelatinous substance called hyaluronan, which has anti-inflammatory and anticancer properties. Now, the question of whether the benefits of the naked mole rat’s abundant levels of this form of hyaluronan — called high molecular mass hyaluronic acid (HMM-HA) — can be exported to other species has recently drawn attention.
Published in Nature, Gorbunova and colleagues from the University of Rochester show that genetically modifying mice to harbor an enzyme that produces HMM-HA extends their lifespan. The researchers go on to show that increasing HMM-HA reduces the prevalence of cancer. Additionally, the nmrHAS2 gene improves the healthspan of mice by countering physiological dysfunction, as measured with a frailty score. These findings provide the first evidence that genes from long-lived species can be exported to other species, perhaps conferring benefits to humans one day.
In this article, the fourth installment of our five-part series on different pathways of aging, we look at the rejuvenation of cells, tissues, and stem cells, a topic that has been gaining increasing popularity thanks to remarkable advancements in the field of epigenetic reprogramming. Recent research suggests that despite the accumulation of molecular damage over time, cells and tissues can indeed undergo rejuvenation. We’ll be exploring key subjects such as Epigenetic reprogramming, PGC1a and GSK3β, Telomerase (TERT), as well as Apoptosis and senescence. Join us on this enlightening journey as we uncover the groundbreaking discoveries that are shaping the future of aging research.
The idea for reprogramming was simple yet beautiful. Children are born young, even though their parents are old, because they have undergone a process of cellular reprogramming that leads to rejuvenation.
Welcome to another exciting episode of our podcast series, where we dive deep into the world of science and innovation! In today’s episode, we have the privilege of interviewing Prof. Michael Levin, a renowned researcher in the fields of bioelectricity, regenerative biology, and biophysics.
Prof. Levin is the director of the Allen Discovery Center at Tufts University and has been making groundbreaking discoveries that are revolutionizing the field of regenerative medicine. His research focuses on understanding the electrical communication within and between cells, and how this communication can be harnessed for tissue repair and regeneration.
In this thought-provoking conversation, we cover:
🔹 The fundamentals of bioelectricity and its role in cellular communication. 🔹 How bioelectric signals can be manipulated to control cell behavior. 🔹 Prof. Levin’s pioneering work in regenerative medicine and tissue engineering. 🔹 The potential applications of bioelectricity in treating various diseases and conditions. 🔹 Ethical considerations and the future of bioelectricity in healthcare.
Join us for this insightful discussion and learn how Prof. Levin’s research is paving the way for innovative solutions in regenerative medicine. Don’t forget to subscribe to our channel for more fascinating interviews with leading experts in science and technology!
AI systems are increasingly being employed to accurately estimate and modify the ages of individuals using image analysis. Building models that are robust to aging variations requires a lot of data and high-quality longitudinal datasets, which are datasets containing images of a large number of individuals collected over several years.
Numerous AI models have been designed to perform such tasks; however, many encounter challenges when effectively manipulating the age attribute while preserving the individual’s facial identity. These systems face the typical challenge of assembling a large set of training data consisting of images that show individual people over many years.
The researchers at NYU Tandon School of Engineering have developed a new artificial intelligence technique to change a person’s apparent age in images while ensuring the preservation of the individual’s unique biometric identity.
That’s why we were struck to see a team of scientists that includes researchers from the name-brand Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts Institute of Technology sounding off about what they say are promising new leads, published this month in the journal Aging.
“We identify six chemical cocktails, which, in less than a week and without compromising cellular identity, restore a youthful genome-wide transcript profile and reverse transcriptomic age,” reads the paper. “Thus, rejuvenation by age reversal can be achieved, not only by genetic, but also chemical means.”
Sounds big, right? The researchers claim they pinpointed six treatments that can reverse aging in cells and turn them into a more “youthful state,” according to a press release from Aging’s publisher, without causing dangerous unregulated cell growth.
