For the first time, scientists have transferred the mechanism of longevity from one mammal to another
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- For the first time, scientists have transferred the mechanism of longevity from one mammal to another
Scientists at the University of Rochester transferred a gene associated with the longevity of a naked mole rat into the genome of mice, and they lived longer and maintained better health than ordinary rodents. This was reported on May 10 in the journal Science Daily.
The naked mole rat is a small wrinkled rodent that is practically cancer—free and lives up to 41 years old. For comparison, mice of comparable size live an average of three to four years. Scientists have been studying the biological features of the digger for a long time, and one of the key discoveries was the discovery of high molecular weight hyaluronic acid (HMW-HA) in its tissues — about ten times more than in mice and humans. This molecule is associated with cancer resistance, control of inflammation, and slowing of age-related changes.
To test whether the same mechanism works in another organism, Gorbunova's team created mice with the hyaluronan synthase 2 gene from the digger genome. In the modified animals, the level of HMW-HA in the tissues increased. They resisted spontaneous tumors and chemically induced skin cancer better, maintained intestinal health, and showed lower levels of inflammation in several tissues as they aged. The median life expectancy increased by about 4.4%.
"Our study proves the fundamental possibility of transferring the unique mechanisms of longevity that have arisen in long—lived mammals to improve the life expectancy of other animals," said Vera Gorbunova, professor of biology and medicine at the University of Rochester.
The increase is small, but the fundamental value of the work lies elsewhere: the mechanism of longevity that arose in one species was successfully transferred to another. The next goal is to apply the same logic to humans. According to Gorbunova, the work on the discovery took ten years — from the discovery of HMW-HA in a digger to the demonstration of its effect on mice. Her colleague Andrey Seluyanov reported that the team has already identified molecules that slow down the breakdown of hyaluronan, and is testing them in preclinical studies.
Denis Rebrikov, a molecular biologist, geneticist, Doctor of Biological Sciences, Professor of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Vice-rector for Research at Pirogov University, said on March 6 that the risk of having a child with a hereditary genetic disease is about 1%, which is higher than the probability of getting into a car accident within a year. The doctor added that the chance of having a child with disabilities is high in closed ethnic or religious groups.
Переведено сервисом «Яндекс Переводчик»
