Getting older is as inevitable as the passing of time and sunsets. We experience a portion of our lives where we are the new “it” generation of emerging youth. Eventually we are forced to move on to the next phase in life where we are no longer the face of vibrancy. While making room for the generation next in line is grudgingly accepted, looking and feeling the effects of aging are hard for many to swallow.
In a time when youth is celebrated and often viewed as a constant instead of transitional, holding off the clock of aging is the pursuit of many. While the options of a healthy diet and exercise combined with surgery are logical choices for some, technology is constantly emerging with hopeful possibilities.
According to the Journal of Regenerative Medicine, Rejuvenation is now a medical discipline that focuses on reversing the process of aging. Scientists hope to affect the aging process by replacing aging or damaged tissue with new tissue. Whereas this may seem like something out of the Twilight Zone, researchers continue to look for ways to reverse or slow down the process. Scientists at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies did an extensive study using mice, hoping to find clues and direction on reversing the aging process. Their research found it was possible to slow down the aging process or even reverse it by manipulating genes that turn adult cells back into embryonic like cells. While the study has yet to move beyond mice as test subjects, researchers are hopeful the results will eventually evolve to include humans.
While some may see this constant quest to look and feel young for a lifetime as unnatural, arguing that aging is inevitable as death and one need only accept the progression of life, doctors in Houston are closer to making age reversal a reality for children afflicted with genetic disorders. Dr. John P. Cooke M.D, Ph.D. (pictured right) and his team have made a discovery that could lead to the development of a technology with the ability to rejuvenate human cells. Progeria, which is also known as Hutchinson-Gilford syndrome is a rare genetic condition that causes children to rapidly age within the first two years of life. The average life expectancy is 13 years, with the cause of death being heart related or strokes. Versus the quest for on-going youth and vitality in aging adults, Dr. Cooke and his team are dedicated to helping children afflicted with a disorder that robs them of their childhood and eventually their lives.
His research focuses on an enzyme in the human body called telomeres, which are located on the end of chromosomes. They protect the chromosomes from deteriorating. As we get older telomeres begin to shorten. With the progression in years the telomeres get shorter and shorter until they are finally unable to reproduce. The tissue then begins to degenerate and eventually dies. Dr. Cooke studied the cells of children with progeria. Using a technology called RNA therapeutics they were able to get the cells to produce a protein called telomerase that can lengthen the telomere, thereby dramatically effecting the cells in terms of extra lifespan and function.
While the focus of Dr. Cooke’s study centers on children afflicted with Progeria, the research could be relevant to all of us. Getting older is the natural order as deemed by mother nature, yet current culture is obsessed with youth. Gone are the days when gray hair and wrinkles coincided with thoughts of wisdom and patience. No doubt researchers will continue to pursue the science and technology that they hope will eventually catch the elusive fountain of youth.