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Molecule Kills Elderly Cells, Reduces Signs of Aging In Mice (sciencemag.org)
An anonymous reader shares an excerpt from a Science Magazine report: Even if you aren't elderly, your body is home to agents of senility -- frail and damaged cells that age us and promote disease. Now, researchers have developed a molecule that selectively destroys these so-called senescent cells. The compound makes old mice act and appear more youthful, providing hope that it may do the same for us. As we get older, senescent cells build up in our tissues, where researchers think they contribute to illnesses such as heart disease, arthritis, and diabetes. In the past, scientists have genetically modified mice to dispatch their senescent cells, allowing the rodents to live longer and reducing plaque buildup in their arteries. Such genetic alterations aren't practical for people, but researchers have reported at least seven compounds, known as senolytics, that kill senescent cells. A clinical trial is testing two of the drugs in patients with kidney disease, and other trials are in the works. However, current senolytic compounds, many of which are cancer drugs, come with downsides. They can kill healthy cells or trigger side effects such as a drop in the number of platelets, the cellular chunks that help our blood clot. Cell biologist Peter de Keizer of Erasmus University Medical Center in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, and colleagues were investigating how senescent cells stay alive when they uncovered a different strategy for attacking them. Senescent cells carry the type of DNA damage that should spur a protective protein, called p53, to put them down. Instead, the researchers found that a different protein, FOXO4, latches onto p53 and prevents it from doing its duty. To counteract this effect, De Keizer and colleagues designed a molecule, known as a peptide, that carries a shortened version of the segment of FOXO4 that attaches to p53. In a petri dish, this peptide prevented FOXO4 and p53 from hooking up, prompting senescent cells to commit suicide. But it spared healthy cells. The researchers then injected the molecule into mutant mice that age rapidly. These rodents live about half as long as normal mice, and when they are only a few months old, their fur starts to fall out, their kidneys begin to falter, and they become sluggish. However, the peptide boosted the density of their fur, reversed the kidney damage, and increased the amount of time they could scurry in a running wheel, the scientists report online today in Cell. When the researchers tested the molecule in normal, elderly mice, they saw a similar picture: In addition to helping their kidneys and fur, the molecule also increased their willingness to explore their surroundings.
More hair and better kidney function?
In other words, it's like washing down Rogaine with beer?
We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
Inject em all!
Let's get working on Deep Thought!
We're finding all these awesome ways to extend and enrich their lives. God I wish I was a rat...
I tend to rant.
I'm glad we seem to be on track to tackling frailty with age... however, we're nowhere when it comes to tackling our resource problems...
A cynical though: Will we stay healthy and strong longer just so we can send the 50 year olds to war over water instead of just the 20 to 30 year olds?
cells
Frankly, I'm not looking so good lately. I've got sores on my face, my gums bleed, and now teeth are gettng loose. It would be great if this special molecule worked for people like me too. Otherwise, I've got come up with a plan "b", pretty damn quick.
The Acheron Group came up with the gerontological treatment, making it possible to live 200 years.
On Earth it led to social friction and a Malthusian crisis.
What sort of stance are we Social Justice Paladins supposed to take?
Until population growth stabilizes. Learn about population from Hans Rosling https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=FACK2knC08E
In that same Science magazine is a tribute to Hans Rosling by Bill Gates Hans Rosling (1948â"2017)
If this allows you to live a health life until 100 they will put retirement age up to 90.
2015 - A Periodic Diet that Mimics Fasting Promotes Multi-System Regeneration, Enhanced Cognitive Performance, and Healthspan
http://www.cell.com/cell-metab...
2016 - Fasting: Awakening the Rejuvenation from Within | Valter Longo | TEDxEchoPark
https://www.youtube.com/watch?...
2017 - Fasting-Mimicking Diet Promotes Ngn3-Driven -Cell Regeneration to Reverse Diabetes
http://www.cell.com/cell/fullt...
You can replicate the study at home with 4 days of a ketogenic fasting mimic diet every 10 days for six cycles with a %5 carb ( 20 net carbs of nuts/greens/dairy) / %75 fat (nuts/olives/fish/eggs/butter) / %20 protein (nuts/fish/eggs/greens/bacon) macro and 50% then 20% , 20% , 20% calorie restriction (the 3 day 10% restriction of the study on mice was extreme and not for the faint of heart). Throw in multi vitamin and probiotic day 3 and 4 and lots and lots of water with pinch of salt now and then/mineral water/coffee/tea during the fast and... amazing. You lose fat, feel better, and if the studies are right; get some nice anti-cancer, anti-aging, anti-disease, body regeneration benefits.
"Such genetic alterations aren't practical for people"
I have two possible thoughts on this:
1) Then you should stop wasting your time on this research and spend your time elsewhere, and
2) Why would this not be practical for people? You can make it happen in mice, but not people? You couldn't give parents an option of assisted fertility (match an egg and sperm from the couple together that have been modified in some way) with these benefits for the child? Of course it isn't practical for people already alive, but if you ever want to solve the "aging" problem, you're probably going to have to break (modify) a few eggs (ovum).
Man scientists don't think in cool ways any more, and/or people are terrified of GMOs, which is just stupid. One day we might have superhumans from genetic modifications living the most amazing lives humans could ever live, and there will still be some idiot hipster who says, "I just don't know, man, I think that genetic modification that's making us live to 350 without any negative side effects is like, killing us, man. Here, try this kale enema, it's great."
... such as:
- craving for cheese
- fear of cats
- irrepressible need to run inside a wheel
If old cells can't reproduce due to lack of telomerase, and all the old cells are then killed. What's left?
And before you talk about just artificially lengthening telomeres, remember that they are essentially an anti-cancer safeguard. The combination of both will produce mutant cancerous zombies.
They can kill healthy cells or trigger side effects such as a drop in the number of platelets, the cellular chunks that help our blood clot.
50 years from now, the world is populated by >100-year-old people who are afraid to prick their finger for fear of bleeding out.
Nope, no sig
People living longer will make Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid bomb out even sooner.
For me, the following was one of the more interesting pieces:
Senescent cells carry the type of DNA damage that should spur a protective protein, called p53, to put them down. Instead, the researchers found that a different protein, FOXO4, latches onto p53 and prevents it from doing its duty. To counteract this effect, De Keizer and colleagues designed a molecule, known as a peptide, that carries a shortened version of the segment of FOXO4 that attaches to p53.
Does this mean we have an internal cleanup mechanism, but somehow it's gotten subverted over the years? Our ancestors may have had the benefit of p53, until something changed and we started developing FOXO4 when we hadn't before? Or somewhere along the line the amount of FOXO4 in our bodies increased? That seems fascinating to me.
My first reaction was also to think, "That doesn't seem like a very useful mutation/bit of evolution" but of course most of the age-related stuff won't be important until you're beyond the age of reproduction, so it's probably relatively easier for that kind of problem to sneak in than something that affects the young. I also wonder if it's *just* a mutation, or if the FOXO4 is doing something else more useful for us when we're young, that the tradeoff is worth it?
The Quirkz Handbook of Self-Improvement for People Who Are Already Pretty Okay
...you stop aging in it's tracks.
I'm 64 - all my cells are old. :)
It might be like suicide for me.
This mollecule will also keep the brains at todler level, and judging by our world it seems many allready have this mollecule in their body's, despite being old and "grownup".
Every few months we see a story like this, bearing the promise of defeating old age. This has been going on for years now, with nothing to show for at the end of the day. It's only a good way for con-artists-posing-as-scientists to sell their bullshit magazines.
Kill off all my elderly brain cells:
a) Pretty much nothing left in my head.
b) Nobody will notice any change.
Don't step on the baby.
About a year ago it was discovered that the common dietary substance quercetin is able to kill senescent endothelial cells in the gi tract.
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/acel.12344/abstract
Death really is unnecessary from an evolutionary standpoint. We have grown beyond the need to pass on genetic traits that allow us to adapt to changing environments since mankind uses technology to do this. Medicines are preventing the need to evolve immunities naturally so the fact that we die is simply the product of inefficiencies on cellular replication. The three things needed for immortality are negative apoptosis, efficient waste removal, and efficient genetic error checking. There is no need for the skin cells you have at 50 to be any different than at 20.
All mammalian cells are constantly producing p53, and disposing of it. When they stop, repair or suicide should occur.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TP53
What kind of cake is that? It is a cellular peptide cake.
If all your cells were senescent you'd be on death's door anyhow.
Then save your own money and retire when you want. SS was meant to be a safety net for the poorest, not a vacation fund for everyone.
Resource problems?
What ???
I only know one guy who died of starvation (been middle class all my life), and it wasn't because he ran out of food.
You go to these 3rd world / emerging countries where corrupt governments stop new businesses and vampire away all the funds they earn and explain how that is a resource problem. Think of the Venezuela horrors where grocery stores are only open for a few hours a day because of government imposed artificial scarcity. And now I suppose you're suggesting a government imposed solution for anti-aging drugs?
200 years ago when 95%+ of the population were farmers I can see how you could make the case that we had resource problems. Let me be the first to tell you we've 1st world problems today.
My father worked into his 70s, so I can hope to work up to what, I'm 170, 180? joy of joys!
To bad I'll be unemployable for 100+ years thanks to ageism in tech.
Killing off those cells early would bring you closer - but just make you feel better while it happens.
Most of your cells probably average about ten years old. Of course, that could mean they've gone through six or eight generations since you were born, and they might be suffering from the photocopy effect.
Captcha: inferior.
We need her alive for the next 4 years.
Well, no... your tissues will be regenerated with various stem cells like normal repair. You've just cleaned out the cruft of the senescent cells. If you had no stem cells and all your cells were senescent, you'll be dead in a week whether you kill them with a treatment like this or not.
P53 is always present in cells but needs to be activated. Basically it's on standby to quickly kill cells in case there's DNA damage(very bad=cancer usually), so FOX helps keep it from killing healthy cells. On a side note peptides tend to get a lot of scrutiny from drug companies/designers. Our bodies readily metabolize peptides, so drug stability/delivery issues are usually the kiss of death for peptide drugs. Also, senescence is a good thing. Senescent cells don't actively divide, the alternative is mitotic cells that do divide. More divisions you have, more likely it is cancer forms. So as always, cancer and aging are inseparable and we're all doomed :)
Right. More forced replication, faster depletion of stem cells.
Just ask Denis Voronenkov.
Mit der Dummheit kämpfen Götter selbst vergebens
How long before other scientists find that it causes cancer in California?
Depleting your stem cells to yield improved organ function is a net positive for your life span, however.