Red Sea Urchins Nearly Immortal

varjag writes "A study by scientists from Oregon State University and the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory have revealed that Red Sea urchins are practically immortal. While they can die from diseases or predator attacks, it seems that their life span has no biological limit. Specimen as old as 100 and 200 years have been discovered, while previously they were expected to last no longer than 7-15 years."

Comments

I wish I owned a biotech startup

[superflex]

Man, this has "genetic analysis" written all over it. Screw world overpopulation problems; I wanna be immortal!
Oh, and just cuz I can, fr0st p1st, bizzatches.

What

[4of12]

The key to their longevity appears to be always growing, but ever so slowly.

I could see where age guessing of a slowly-changing organism would be difficult and that they would corroborate their results with nuclear information because biochemical indicators are so flat.

This is also consistent with Duncan MacLeod and the other Immortals being under 40.

Re:What

[azav]

Um, no.

Look at the factors that affect vertebrate aging. Aming them the telomeres falling off the ends of our DNA, Oxidative damage to cellular structures ala free radicals, etc...

We are VASTLY more complex organisms than echinoderms on the most fundamental levels (bilateral symmetry vs radial) and what holds true for their life forms may not hold true to ours.

FYI, radial vs bilateral symmetry in animals is a very very fundamental distingiushing factor with regards to evolutionary development. A long long long long long long time ago, there may have been a common ancestor for the urchin (an echinoderm) and us (a vertebrate). Symmetry is so fundamental that organisms to not evolve and change their symmetry. This shows that the several hundred million years of evolution that lead to the Humans and Red Sea Urchins of today may indicate that what provides immortality on one may not provide immortality in others.

Start checking for repair mechanisms of the DNA and cellular organelles and telomere length in young and old urchins.

Also, what about cancer? All vertebrates (even dinosaurs) get cancer. Do these echnoderms? The physiology is so vastly different between us and them that many things may not apply.

Urchins are well protected

[barakn]

and so if there's no biochemical reason for them to die then they could live to a ripe old age.

A friend of mine was swimming off a beach in Bali and stepped on a long-spined urchin (unknown species) with both feet, which caused immediate and excruciating pain. After his brother helped him on shore, the Balinese natives broke the spines off right where they protruded from the bottoms of his feet. Then they poured lemon juice on the puncture sights and started pounding the soles of his feet with rocks, for hours. The pain was so excruciating he became delirious and started laughing.

The treatment broke up and dissolved the spines below the skin, and that probably saved his life. Apparently there's some sort of toxin, as he was extremely sick for the next 2 weeks. Had the spines remained embedded in his feet, there would have been enough toxin to kill him, a doctor told him later.

free as in radicals

[Anonymous Coward]

AFAIK, The effects of aging are thought to be caused primarily by interference with cell replication by "free radicals" - oxidizing agents that damage proteins required for proper cell function.

What could we learn from the sea urchin about preventing this type of cellular damage?