4 ms·

True. But a lot of studies show that enhancing telomerase activity is related to longer telomere length, which is related to lower risks of mortality and diseas

by leoh 14y ago

True. But a lot of studies show that enhancing telomerase activity is related to longer telomere length, which is related to lower risks of mortality and diseases. Induced in vivo gene expression is really hard to accomplish -- and you have good reason to be dubious of direct application to Homo sapiens. But one very good take away from the article is that it furthers the argument that telomerase activity is very very good for mammals. And it turns out there are some good ways of enhancing telomerase activity without inducing gene expression: exercise, stress-reduction, and a good diet. Here's some background literature: The Nobel Prize in 2009 was related to work in this area! http://www.nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/medicine/laureates/2009/press.html http://www.nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/medicine/laureates/20... Good NEJM Review about Telomeres http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMra0903373 http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMra0903373 Very nice paper from Science, "Extension of Life-Span by Introduction of Telomerase into Normal Human Cells." Similar to the article posted, but was done with cell in vitro http://www.sciencemag.org/content/279/5349/349.short http://www.sciencemag.org/content/279/5349/349.short Finally, an article from PNAS "Accelerated telomere shortening in response to life stress" http://www.pnas.org/content/101/49/17312.short http://www.pnas.org/content/101/49/17312.short Enjoy!

carbocation 14y ago
Heh, I worked a floor away from Dr. Szostak the year he won the Nobel. (Purely a curio, I've never met him and his knowledge didn't osmose my way.) Call me boring, but my opinion is that telomerase activity is good until it isn't, just like everything else. However, Yamanaka's iPS work is a good reminder that sometimes manipulating a surprisingly few substances (4 proteins, in his case, leading to induced pluripotence of previously differentiated cells) is all that is needed for profound effect.
- 001sky 14y ago
  induced pluripotence > http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Induced_pluripotent_stem_cells http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Induced_pluripotent_stem_cells
Retric 14y ago
Unfortunately, changing telomerase activity is also rather strongly linked to cancer. Still, with the dramatic improvements in cancer treatment over the last 30 years there may be a useful tradeoff where an increased cancer risk is offset by an increased heath / lifespan on average. But, don't expect a free lunch as evolution tends to find those fairly quickly.
- andrewtbham 14y ago
  Did you read this part? This study "shows that it is possible to develop a telomerase-based anti-aging gene therapy without increasing the incidence of cancer," the authors affirm.
  - Retric 14y ago
    Translation: "There was no statistically significant increase in cancer detected." However, that's less meaningful than you might think as detecting even a 2x increase in cancer among mice is a lot harder than say showing in increased population lifespan. http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/emmm.201200245/full http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/emmm.201200245/fu...
    - carbocation 14y ago
      The real question is what was their power to detect an X-fold increase in cancer. Probably quite low, as that was not the purpose of this particular study.

by leoh 14y ago

carbocation 14y ago

Heh, I worked a floor away from Dr. Szostak the year he won the Nobel. (Purely a curio, I've never met him and his knowledge didn't osmose my way.) Call me boring, but my opinion is that telomerase activity is good until it isn't, just like everything else. However, Yamanaka's iPS work is a good reminder that sometimes manipulating a surprisingly few substances (4 proteins, in his case, leading to induced pluripotence of previously differentiated cells) is all that is needed for profound effect.

001sky 14y ago
induced pluripotence > http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Induced_pluripotent_stem_cells http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Induced_pluripotent_stem_cells

Retric 14y ago

Unfortunately, changing telomerase activity is also rather strongly linked to cancer. Still, with the dramatic improvements in cancer treatment over the last 30 years there may be a useful tradeoff where an increased cancer risk is offset by an increased heath / lifespan on average. But, don't expect a free lunch as evolution tends to find those fairly quickly.

andrewtbham 14y ago
Did you read this part? This study "shows that it is possible to develop a telomerase-based anti-aging gene therapy without increasing the incidence of cancer," the authors affirm.
- Retric 14y ago
  Translation: "There was no statistically significant increase in cancer detected." However, that's less meaningful than you might think as detecting even a 2x increase in cancer among mice is a lot harder than say showing in increased population lifespan. http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/emmm.201200245/full http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/emmm.201200245/fu...
  - carbocation 14y ago
    The real question is what was their power to detect an X-fold increase in cancer. Probably quite low, as that was not the purpose of this particular study.