Elixir of life gene swap feeds longevity hopes
SCIENTISTS have taken the first step to giving humans longer and healthier lives using a gene from the death-defying naked mole rat.
The mouse-sized creature has exceptional longevity – living up to 41 years, nearly 10 times as long as rodent peers.
And, unlike them, it rarely suffers from cancer, cardiovascular disease, brain deterioration or arthritis as it ages. Now boffins have pinpointed the “elixir of life” gene responsible and transferred it into mice, boosting their health and lifespan by 4.4%. In humans that would equate to an extra 3.5 years for an 80-year-old.
Prof Vera Gorbunova led the research at the University of Rochester, New York. She said: “Our study provides a proof of principle that unique longevity mechanisms that evolved in long-lived mammalian species can be exported to improve the lifespans of other mammals.”
One of the naked mole rat’s secrets appears to be high molecular weight hyaluronic acid, which boosts the protection and repair of cells – and gives it an unusual resistance to cancer.
Its body has about 10 times more of it than humans and mice. When the scientists removed HMW-HA from naked mole rat cells, they were more likely to form tumours. The team then reproduced its gene which makes HMW-HA.
All mammals have a version of it but the naked mole rat’s is turbo-charged by comparison. The benefits to the mice which were given that gene included better overall health and a longer life.
They also had less inflammation as they aged, a healthier gut and better protection against both spontaneous tumours and chemically induced skin cancer.
Prof Gorbunova said in Nature journal: “Our next goal is to transfer this benefit to humans.” Her colleague Prof Andrei Seluanov added: “We hope that our findings will provide the first, but not the last, example of how longevity adaptations from a long-lived species can be adapted to benefit human longevity and health.”
They now aim to harness the powers of HMW-HA in humans by slowing down its degradation or speeding up its production.