X-Message-Number: 26893
Date: Sat, 27 Aug 2005 09:30:26 -0700 (PDT)
From: Doug Skrecky <>
Subject: Life-extension with klotho

[Mutant klotho deficient mice have been found to suffer from
extreme premature aging. Now different klotho augmented mice have
been found to age at a distinctly slower rate. This research looks like
it may constitute a scientific breakthrough in the understanding of the
aging process.]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/4186324.stm

Scientists probe anti-ageing gene

By Roland Pease BBC Science Correspondent

Klotho seems to delay the effects of old age in mice

Scientists in the United States have discovered a gene that can keep
mice alive for 30% longer than normal.

They say the gene has a key role to play in many of the processes
related to ageing.

Because humans have a very similar version of the gene, the hope is that
it will show a way to improve our declining years.

The gene studied in the new research is called Klotho, named after a
minor Greek goddess who spins life's thread.

The gene certainly seems to do that.

Mice - and people - with defective forms of the gene appear to age
prematurely.

Now researchers have shown that by boosting the activity of the gene,
they can extend the natural lives of male mice from two to three years.

The effect is not quite so strong in female mice.

Downsides

"It could be one of the significant steps for developing anti-ageing
therapy," Dr Makoto Kuro-o, assistant professor of pathology at the
University of Texas' Southwestern Medical Center and senior author of
the study, told Science magazine.

Klotho seems to delay many of the effects of old age, like the weakening
of bones, clogging of the arteries and loss of muscle fitness.

This is important for those researching the causes of ageing, whose
intention is not so much to prolong life as to improve the quality of
our final years.

But there may be downsides with Klotho.

The long-lived mice in the new experiments tend to be less fertile.

And the gene may also predispose people to diabetes.

The trick for researchers will be to find ways of getting the
life-enhancing results of Klotho while avoiding the drawbacks.

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