Aging Erodes Genetic Control, but That's Flexible

     Undergraduate researchers at Brown University have recently confirmed a hypothesized age defect in flies, one which was previously only known to happen in yeast. Researchers had found that in yeast, age led to the degredation of gene supression, which contributed to many problems common to advanced age (due to the need for harmful genes to be surpressed). Using reporter genes to track levels of silencing, the Brown researchers were able to repeat this phenomenon is fruit flies. Using this new knowledge, they then tried several different "anti-aging" techniques to see if they restored levels of gene silencing found in the younger flies. Of these methods, severe calorie restriction was found to be the most useful.
     While this finding doesn't necessarily prove that the same process occurs in humans, it certainly posits that this may be the case. While further study is necessary, having an aging indicator like gene silencing would allow scientists to find out which methods of youth restoration are most effective.

     This article hit home for me. Anti-aging science has always been a topic of interest, and one that is of vital importance and urgency (not getting any younger...). While the findings here are small, they are definitely an important step towards anti-aging technology of the future.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/11/131120143752.htm
http://venturebeat.com/2013/11/20/calico-enlists-a-genetics-a-team-for-its-mysterious-anti-aging-venture/