• Home
  • Health & Wellness
  • Disclaimer
    • Terms of Use
    • Privacy Policy
    • DMCA Notice
Podcast
  • Home
  • Health & Wellness
  • Disclaimer
    • Terms of Use
    • Privacy Policy
    • DMCA Notice
24/7 Health News
No Result
View All Result
Home Article

Jeff Bezos is looking to defy death – this is what we know about the science of ageing

January 21, 2022
in Article
0
Jeff Bezos is looking to defy death – this is what we know about the science of ageing

Jeff Bezos is on a mission to conquer ageing. He has just recruited Hal Barron from GlaxoSmithKline to help lead Altos Labs, the ambitious new anti-ageing company with billions of investment. So what does science really say about this? Could we beat ageing?

Ageing isn’t just a change in how we feel or look, ageing happens at a cellular level. In a lab culture dish, adult skin cells divide roughly 50 times before stopping. But skin cells from a newborn baby can divide 80 or 90 times. And on the flip side, cells from someone elderly divide only around twenty times.

Ageing is also evident in our genes. Our genetic material is modified over time – chemicals can be attached that change which genes are switched on or off. These are called epigenetic changes, and they build up as we age. Another kind of change takes place at the ends of our cell’s DNA. Repeating segments of DNA called telomeres act like the plastic tip of a shoelace, preventing the twisted coils of genetic material from fraying at the ends or knotting together. But these telomeres shorten each time a cell divides. We don’t know if short telomeres are merely a mark of ageing, like grey hair, or are part of the process by which cells age.

Cells, chromosomes and telomeres

Graphic showing telomeres.
Telomeres are like the protective caps on the ends of shoelaces.
Fancy Tapis/Shutterstock

To keep alive and keep dividing, immune cells stop their telomeres shortening when they multiply, as do cancer cells. This is probably a contributing factor in their apparent immortality. Drugs that stop telomerase from working also show promise against cancer (although cancer cells can evolve resistance).

Bigger question

Given that ageing has such a profound effect on our cells and genes – the effects mentioned here being just some examples – a much bigger question emerges: why does this happen? Why do we age?

It was once thought that ageing happened for the continuing evolution of species. In other words, the evolution of a species requires a turnover of individuals. However, one problem with this idea is that most life on Earth doesn’t ever reach old age. Most animals are killed by predators, disease, the climate or starvation. So an inbuilt limit on an animal’s lifespan may not be important to evolution.

Another view is that ageing is simply a side-effect of the damage that builds up over time caused by metabolism or exposure to ultraviolet light from the Sun. We do know that genes are damaged as we age, but it is not proven that this drives ageing directly. Another possibility is that ageing might have evolved as a defence against cancer. Since cells accumulate genetic damage over time, they may have evolved a process to not persist in the body for too long, in case this damage eventually causes a cell to turn cancerous.

As we age, some of the body’s cells enter a state called senescence, in which a cell stays alive but stops dividing. Senescent cells accumulate in the body over a lifetime – especially in the skin, liver, lung and spleen – and have both beneficial and detrimental effects.

They are beneficial because they secrete chemicals that help repair damaged tissue, but over a long period of time, as senescent cells increase in number, they can disrupt the normal structure of organs and tissues. These cells could be an underlying cause of many of the problems we associate with ageing. Mice in which senescent cells were cleared were profoundly delayed in showing signs of ageing.

We can describe a lot of what happens during ageing at the level of what physically happens to our genes, cells and organs. But the fundamental question of why we age is still open. In all likelihood, there is more than one correct answer.

Of course, nobody knows whether Bezos’s company can succeed in helping extend the human lifespan. But what is clear is that by studying ageing, exciting new discoveries are bound to emerge. Never listen to anyone who says the big questions have already been answered. As I’ve recently detailed in a book about new technology and the human body, The Secret Body, I’m confident that dramatic breakthroughs will profoundly change the experience of being human in the coming century.

The Conversation

Daniel M Davis is the author of three books published by Penguin Random House: The Compatibility Gene, The Beautiful Cure and most recently, The Secret Body. He receives research funding from The Medical Research Council, Cancer Research UK, The Wellcome Trust, GSK, Bristol Myers Squibb and Continuum Life Sciences. He tweets at @dandavis101

ShareTweetSharePin
Previous Post

Heavy drinkers increased their alcohol consumption the most during lockdown – new research

Next Post

Short-sightedness is on the rise in both children and adults – new study

Next Post
Short-sightedness is on the rise in both children and adults – new study

Short-sightedness is on the rise in both children and adults – new study

Most Read

What causes stuttering? A speech pathology researcher explains the science and the misconceptions around this speech disorder

What causes stuttering? A speech pathology researcher explains the science and the misconceptions around this speech disorder

December 15, 2022
morning back pain

Morning Again Ache Trigger Is Not the Mattress

October 11, 2021
lower back pain relief exercises

5 decrease again ache aid workouts

October 11, 2021
3 years after legalization, we have shockingly little information about how it changed cannabis use and health harms

3 years after legalization, we have shockingly little information about how it changed cannabis use and health harms

October 15, 2021
Nasal vaccines promise to stop the COVID-19 virus before it gets to the lungs – an immunologist explains how they work

Nasal vaccines promise to stop the COVID-19 virus before it gets to the lungs – an immunologist explains how they work

December 14, 2022
bleeding in gum

When The Bleeding in gum Is Severe ?

October 11, 2021
Good Night Sleep

6 Causes of Good Evening Sleep

October 11, 2021

COVID vaccines: how one can pace up rollout in poorer international locations

October 5, 2021
Ten small changes you can make today to prevent weight gain

Ten small changes you can make today to prevent weight gain

October 12, 2021
Support and collaboration with health-care providers can help people make health decisions

Support and collaboration with health-care providers can help people make health decisions

December 16, 2021
Greece to make COVID vaccines mandatory for over-60s, but do vaccine mandates work?

Greece to make COVID vaccines mandatory for over-60s, but do vaccine mandates work?

December 1, 2021

Multiple sclerosis: the link with earlier infection just got stronger – new study

October 12, 2021
News of war can impact your mental health — here’s how to cope

Binge-eating disorder is more common than many realise, yet it’s rarely discussed – here’s what you need to know

December 2, 2022
Nurses’ attitudes toward COVID-19 vaccination for their children are highly influenced by partisanship, a new study finds

Nurses’ attitudes toward COVID-19 vaccination for their children are highly influenced by partisanship, a new study finds

December 2, 2022
Kick up your heels – ballroom dancing offers benefits to the aging brain and could help stave off dementia

Kick up your heels – ballroom dancing offers benefits to the aging brain and could help stave off dementia

January 3, 2023
How hot is too hot for the human body? Our lab found heat + humidity gets dangerous faster than many people realize

How hot is too hot for the human body? Our lab found heat + humidity gets dangerous faster than many people realize

July 6, 2022
The promise of repairing bones and tendons with human-made materials

The promise of repairing bones and tendons with human-made materials

January 4, 2022
As viral infections skyrocket, masks are still a tried-and-true way to help keep yourself and others safe

As viral infections skyrocket, masks are still a tried-and-true way to help keep yourself and others safe

December 14, 2022
How regulatory agencies, not the courts, are imposing COVID-19 vaccine mandates

How regulatory agencies, not the courts, are imposing COVID-19 vaccine mandates

October 24, 2021
Heart disease risk from saturated fats may depend on what foods they come from – new research

Heart disease risk from saturated fats may depend on what foods they come from – new research

November 29, 2021
Late night eating may cause greater weight gain – new research points to why

Late night eating may cause greater weight gain – new research points to why

October 12, 2022

10 Things I Learned During My Body Transformation

October 12, 2021

7 Health Benefits of Sweet Potatoes

October 12, 2021
Nobel prize: how chilli peppers helped researchers uncover how humans feel pain

Nobel prize: how chilli peppers helped researchers uncover how humans feel pain

October 12, 2021
How air filters can make COVID wards safer for patients and staff

How air filters can make COVID wards safer for patients and staff

December 1, 2021
GPs don’t give useful weight-loss advice – new study

GPs don’t give useful weight-loss advice – new study

December 16, 2022
Four ways to avoid gaining weight over the festive period – but also why you shouldn’t fret about it too much

Four ways to avoid gaining weight over the festive period – but also why you shouldn’t fret about it too much

December 22, 2022
Five ways to avoid pain and injury when starting a new exercise regime

Five ways to avoid pain and injury when starting a new exercise regime

December 30, 2022
Why suicide prevention support is crucial for people with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder

Why suicide prevention support is crucial for people with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder

September 28, 2022
Too hot to handle: Climate considerations for youth sport during the hottest years on record

Too hot to handle: Climate considerations for youth sport during the hottest years on record

July 19, 2022
  • Home
  • Health & Wellness
  • Disclaimer

© 2020 DAILY HEALTH NEWS

  • Home
  • Health & Wellness
  • Disclaimer
    • Terms of Use
    • Privacy Policy
    • DMCA Notice

© 2020 DAILY HEALTH NEWS