About the quest for immortality or at least prolong life written not one novel, not one shot film and conducted a lot of scientific works. But the fact is that the so-called immortality enzyme was found already long enough, but to solve its secret and to get closer to the coveted eternal life has been recently.
We are talking about the enzyme called telomerase. It is, in short, at the time of cell division is responsible for the length of the telomeres — the end parts of the DNA molecule. With each successive division, these areas decrease, reaching a critically short length, causing cell death.
According to the publication Science Daily, the team of scientists from the University of Arizona (USA) were able to detect an important step in the catalytic cycle of the above-mentioned enzyme. The solution of this mechanism opens up opportunities in the treatment against aging. A group of scientists led by Professor Julian Chen relied in his research on the work of Leonard Hayflick. He’s still more than half a century ago established that human cells have a limited ability to replicate, and then die. This period was called the “Hayflick limit”, and it is directly linked with the number of slices and repetitions of DNA replication.
“Telomerase has a built-in “braking system” to ensure the accurate synthesis of correct repetitions of telomeric DNA. But this mechanism also limits the total activity of the enzyme telomerase. If you find a way to affect the activity of this system, you can restore lost telomere length of cells and even completely stop the aging process.”
Moreover, the new study may be useful not only for people who want to live longer, but will save you from several diseases. For example, conditions such as adhesive dyskeratosis, aplastic anemia and idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis are associated with genetic mutations that alter telomerase activity and accelerate the reduction of telomere length. This not only causes cellular damage and death, but also affects the entire organs and systems. So in this case, “telomerase therapy” can become a new word in the treatment of life-threatening conditions.
Scientists understand the “enzyme of immortality”
Vladimir Kuznetsov