2023-06-12 18:00:00
According a new study published in the journal Nature Aging, “rejuvenate” the intestines would be enough to slow down the premature aging of the organism.
The intestines, an essential place to study aging
To reach this conclusion, the scientists conducted experiments on zebrafish to determine the impact of cellular aging in the gut.
The researchers first genetically engineered zebrafish to not express telomerase, an enzyme that lengthens telomeres, structures that protect the ends of chromosomes and shorten with age. They then found that the lack of telomerase accelerates the shortening of these telomeres and causes premature aging. This first experiment confirmed that the intestines are an essential place to study aging.
New therapeutic avenues
The researchers then further modified their zebrafish so that they expressed telomerase only in cells of the intestine, thus avoiding the early shortening of telomeres only in this organ. They then showed that “tissue-specific telomerase expression in the intestine may prevent telomere shortening and slow premature aging”.
This finding is important because it suggests that telomere-dependent aging in one organ can influence the aging of the whole organism. It might offer new therapeutic avenues to extend lifespan.
How do telomeres work?
Telomeres are key DNA structures that protect our chromosomes and are linked to aging, age-related diseases and cancer.
With each cell division, the telomeres shorten, thus reducing the length of the chromosomes. Researchers believe that this reduction is responsible for the reduced ability of cells to regenerate.
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