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Credit: https://www.mfoundation.org/news/2019/3/19/cell-reprogramming-leads-to-reversal-in-cell-aging
Scientists reprogram cells from a supercentenarian to understand extreme longevity
May 3, 2021
- Recent research investigated why a very small subset of the human population is able to live such long and healthy lives.
- Cells from a 114-year-old were reprogrammed into stem cells, practically resetting their age to zero.
- The researchers inferred that there’s probably no upper age limit for cells to undergo reprogramming.
A recent study — which was published in Biochemical and Biophysical Research Communications – aimed to improve understanding of the underlying mechanisms of extreme longevity and healthspan.
Supercentenarians are individuals aged above 110 years. This subset has attracted the attention of longevity researchers because they outlive the majority of the population and appear to remain healthy during extreme old age.
According to the Gerontology Research Group, there were only 22 living supercentenarians as of April 2021. The majority of these were American and Japanese nationals.
Reaching supercentenarian age is a rare feat that even scientists do not fully understand. Out of 1,000 people who reach the age of 100 years, only 1 becomes a supercentenarian.
Previous research on this super-aged group found common characteristics. A study completed in 2008 and targeting supercentenarians in Japan found little to no history of cardiovascular disease, and zero history of cancer or diabetes. Most of these people were able to complete their normal activities until they were a 100, with frailty setting in at 105 years old.
However, until this study, researchers didn’t know that they could reset the age of cells taken from someone so elderly. The group now believes they might have made a step towards the reversal of cellular aging.
Cell reprogramming was first introduced by Dr. Shinya Yamanaka (a Nobel prize-winning scientist) in the late 2000s. It is a complex process that aims to revert mature cells into stem cells, effectively resetting the age to zero. Stem cells are basically the body’s raw materials that can differentiate into any other type of cells.
“We set out to answer a big question: Can you reprogram cells this old?” said study author Evan Y. Snyder, who is also the director of the Center for Stem Cells and Regenerative Medicine at Sanford Burnham Prebys in California.
The researchers harnessed blood cells from a 114-year-old, a healthy 43-year-old and an 8-year-old participant with a genetic condition that causes rapid aging in childhood. Remarkably, the cells from the supercentenarian were transformed into stem cells just as easily as those from the others.
The study also found that telomeres — which protect the ends of chromosomes from deterioration but shorten with age — were also reset. But not all telomeres were reset, which may indicate that aging does have a lasting effect on cells.
The research team believes that by transforming supercentenarian cells back to stem cells, they will be able to figure out what allows this group to live such long and healthy lives.
“Why do supercentenarians age so slowly? We are now set to answer that question in a way no one has been able to before. This tells us that there is probably no upper age barrier for cells to undergo reprogramming when given the appropriate conditions and that cells do not accumulate sufficient damage over a long life that would completely prevent their ability to reprogram,” Snyder said.
The scientists are now hoping to experiment with different types of cells to see if there are processes that are unique to this group.
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