How do I knock off thirty years from my age?
Faust, the protagonist in Johann Wolfgang von Goethe’s famous play, poses this question to Mephistopheles in the chapter Hexenküche (Witches’ kitchen). Mephistopheles provides some pretty good advice – considering that he is the devil and this fictitious exchange takes place in the dark Middle Ages: (...)
Here is the paraphrased essence of the devil’s advice: Seek out a life of moderation, stop being lazy, exercise regularly by ploughing the field and avoid unhealthy foods!
How does the great scholar and scientist Faust respond to these commonsense suggestions?
Thanks, but no thanks. Faust does not like manual labor and is quite happy with his current lifestyle, so he instead opts for plan B – a magic youth potion. (...)
Faust, the protagonist in Johann Wolfgang von Goethe’s famous play, poses this question to Mephistopheles in the chapter Hexenküche (Witches’ kitchen). Mephistopheles provides some pretty good advice – considering that he is the devil and this fictitious exchange takes place in the dark Middle Ages: (...)
Here is the paraphrased essence of the devil’s advice: Seek out a life of moderation, stop being lazy, exercise regularly by ploughing the field and avoid unhealthy foods!
How does the great scholar and scientist Faust respond to these commonsense suggestions?
Thanks, but no thanks. Faust does not like manual labor and is quite happy with his current lifestyle, so he instead opts for plan B – a magic youth potion. (...)
At the 64th Lindau Nobel Laureate meeting, Elizabeth Blackburn reviewed the history of how she and her colleagues identified the role of telomeres and telomerase in the cellular aging process, but also presented newer data of how measuring the length of telomeres in a blood sample can predict one’s propensity for longevity and health. It makes intuitive and theoretical sense that having long telomeres would be a good thing but it is nice to have real-world data collected from thousands of humans confirming that this is indeed the case. A prospective study collected blood samples and measured the mean telomere length of white blood cells in 787 participants and followed them for 10 years to see who would develop cancer. Telomere length was inversely correlated with likelihood of developing cancer and dying from cancer. The individuals in the shortest telomere group were three times more likely to develop cancer than the longest telomere group within the ten year observation period! A similar correlation between long telomeres and less disease also exists for cardiovascular disease.
Dr. Blackburn was quick to point out that these correlations do not necessarily mean that there is a direct cause and effect relationship. In fact, increasing telomerase levels ought to lengthen telomeres but in the case of cancer, too much telomerase can be just as bad as too little telomeres. Too much telomerase can help confer immortality onto cancer cells and actually increase the likelihood of cancer, whereas too little telomerase can also increase cancer by depleting the healthy regenerative potential of the body. To reduce the risk of cancer we need an ideal level of telomerase, with not a whole lot of room for error. This clarifies that “telomerase shots” are not the magical anti-aging potion that Faust and so many other humans have sought throughout history.
Why is that telomere lengths are such good predictors of longevity, but too much telomerase can be bad for you? The answer is probably that telomere lengths measured in the white blood cells reflect a broad range of factors, such as our genetic makeup but also the history of a cell. Some of us may be lucky because we are genetically endowed with a slightly higher telomerase activity or longer telomeres, but the environment also plays a major role in regulating telomeres. If our cells are exposed to a lot of stress and injury – even at a young age – then they are forced to divide more often and shorten their telomeres. The telomere length measurements which predict health and longevity are snapshots taken at a certain point in time and cannot distinguish between inherited traits which confer the gift of longer telomeres to some and the lack environmental stressors which may have allowed cells to maintain long telomeres.
by Jalees Rehman, Lindau Nobel Laureate Meetings | Read more:
Image: Tiziano Vecellio: Three Ages of Man
Dr. Blackburn was quick to point out that these correlations do not necessarily mean that there is a direct cause and effect relationship. In fact, increasing telomerase levels ought to lengthen telomeres but in the case of cancer, too much telomerase can be just as bad as too little telomeres. Too much telomerase can help confer immortality onto cancer cells and actually increase the likelihood of cancer, whereas too little telomerase can also increase cancer by depleting the healthy regenerative potential of the body. To reduce the risk of cancer we need an ideal level of telomerase, with not a whole lot of room for error. This clarifies that “telomerase shots” are not the magical anti-aging potion that Faust and so many other humans have sought throughout history.
Why is that telomere lengths are such good predictors of longevity, but too much telomerase can be bad for you? The answer is probably that telomere lengths measured in the white blood cells reflect a broad range of factors, such as our genetic makeup but also the history of a cell. Some of us may be lucky because we are genetically endowed with a slightly higher telomerase activity or longer telomeres, but the environment also plays a major role in regulating telomeres. If our cells are exposed to a lot of stress and injury – even at a young age – then they are forced to divide more often and shorten their telomeres. The telomere length measurements which predict health and longevity are snapshots taken at a certain point in time and cannot distinguish between inherited traits which confer the gift of longer telomeres to some and the lack environmental stressors which may have allowed cells to maintain long telomeres.
by Jalees Rehman, Lindau Nobel Laureate Meetings | Read more:
Image: Tiziano Vecellio: Three Ages of Man
