Longer Life Span?

     Nobody wants to die, living a longer life is a goal that most people have. People have tried many many things to try to live a longer life, with not much success. Dr. Ajit, a researcher at the University of California may be on to something. His research has uncovered a gene that may be linked to a longer lifespan. This gene (CD33rSIGLEC) is involved anti inflammation. Dr Ajit's research as proven that mice with less copies of this gene show signs of early aging and death. This research is the first of its kind that links a specific gene to living longer, although this is still the beginning of  this research it is looking promising.


     Inflammation is a natural process of the bodies immune system, it is completely normal for the body to respond to infection or tissue damage with swelling. However, chronic inflammation can be a hazard to the body, such  as arthritis, or celiac disease. Having inflammation for long periods of time can destroy tissues and cause premature aging. With this information it makes sense that having a gene that codes against inflammation would cause you to live longer. The issue that arose in this research is that they have yet to find out if this gene is linked to a longer life, or if mammals would develop more of this gene because they were living longer. There is still research to be done on this topic but I believe that these scientists are on the right track.


Article: A Longer Life May Lie in Number of Anti-Inflammatory Genes
Article 2: More Anti-inflammatory Genes Mean Longer Lifespans for Mammals

Anti- Inflammatory Gene key to a longer life ?

Researchers at the University of California San Diego School of Medicine have just uncovered new research that seems to tie a specific gene which reduces inflammation to a longer healthier lifestyle. The researchers have uncovered a gene called CD33rSIGLEC this specific gene is known to help stop inflammation in the tissues. This is nothing new, but what is new is learning that the amount of the gene you have regulates the amount of inflammation you have in certain tissues. The whole idea behind the research is that the more CD33rSIGLEC you have the less inflammation you have which will lead to a longer healthier life. Mediterranean diets which are high in fruits and healthy oils are also known to reduce inflammation and significantly increase your life span.

I think that this research is very important because many diseases are cause by inflammation such as rheumatoid arthritis. If there was a way that we could regulate this gene and have a healthy equilibrium in our cells to fight inflammation we could drastically increase the quality of life for many people. Inflammation is not something that will kill you right away it is something you have to manage that follows you every day like a curse and if we could do something to help people rid themselves of this curse that would be ground breaking.


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More anti-inflammatory genes mean longer lifespans for mammals

In a recent study published by eLife, researchers at the University of California San Diego reported a correlation between CD33rSIGLEC gene copy number and maximum lifespan across 14 mammalian species. It was also found that mice lacking one CD33rSIGLEC gene copy do not live as long as normal mice, have higher levels of reactive oxygen species and experience more molecular damage. The CD33rSIGLEC genes encode siglec receptors that bind sialic acids. The siglec receptors stick out on the outer surface of immune cells, probing the surface of other cells in the body. When sialic acids bind siglec receptors they transmit the message to the inside of the cell and this signal relay puts a brake on immune cell activation. Through this process the CD33rSIGLEC receptors help dampen chronic inflammation and reactive oxygen species that are known to contribute to molecular damage and aging. The higher CD33rSIGLEC gene number could be considered as an improved maintenance system that co-evolved with mammals to buffer against the effects of infectious episodes.

Although the reported results are not definitive they are the first time lifespan has been correlated with a single gene copy number. It seems a bit far-fetched that a single gene number could influence the duration of lifespan but it is surely worth further research. Humans vary in the number of CD33rSIGLEC gene copies and it would be interesting to see if these genes influence human lifespan similarly to mice.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2015/04/150407095350.htm

http://www.livescience.com/50409-longer-life-span-anti-inflammatory-genes.html