October 4th, 2005
Similar Mechanisms Mean Faster Research
Good news from Betterhumans: scientists have found that another longevity gene exists in mice as well as nematode worms. The more mechanisms of aging are similar between species, the more rapidly basic aging research can proceed - this is because it is much cheaper and faster to work with worms, flies and yeast than with mice or other mammals. If work in lesser organisms has greater value, then this is good news for us. From the article: "the longevity-promoting effect of reducing clk-1/mclk1 activity that was initially observed in C. elegans is conserved in mice, supporting the idea that some molecular mechanisms of aging are shared throughout the animal kingdom."