Reversing DNA Aging in Mice

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A research team that was led by Dr. David Sinclair discovered a possible method to reverse or prevent the DNA damage that is caused by aging in mice. Sinclair put drops of NAD+ , which plays a critical role in DNA repair functions, into the water of a group of mice. Their NAD+ levels rose and within the first week, the mice had shown signs of age reversal in muscle and DNA repair improvements. They hypothesized that increasing NAD+ levels reverses aging due to its role in DNA repair and its relationship with a repair compound known as PARP1. When NAD+ levels are high, PARP1 activates. However, since NAD+ levels decrease with age, PARP1 cannot activate. This eventually leads to DNA damage because the DNA is not being repaired.

This topic was an interesting read because I have heard about the potential effects of increasing NAD+ levels before. It has a lot of potential because it could be used to target cancer cells and improve the responses of some patients. It could also treat DNA damage caused by external sources. The discovery can increase our understanding of how cancerous cells can be treated and how DNA damage can be prevented.

References

1. Jun Li, 
2. Michael S. Bonkowski, 
3. Sébastien Moniot, 
4. Dapeng Zhang, 
5. Basil P. Hubbard, 
6. Alvin J. Y. Ling, 
7. Luis A. Rajman, 
8. Bo Qin, 
9. Zhenkun Lou, 
10. Vera Gorbunova, 
11. L. Aravind, 
12. Clemens Steegborn, 
13. David A. Sinclair. 
A conserved NAD+ binding pocket that regulates protein-protein interactions during aging. Science, 2017. http://science.sciencemag.org/cgi/doi/10.1126/science.aad8242

Rats Beat Aging

Did you ever wonder of you can beat the effects of aging? Well, a new study showed that mice can. Scientists at Washington University School of Medicine gave healthy mice a natural compound called NMN. Tests have shown that these mice had more energy and reduced typical signs of aging. For example, weight gain, decrease in physical activity and loss of insulin sensitivity. Thus, older rats act like younger ones. Scientists believe that this can help humans remain healthier as they age since mice cells and human cells rely on the same process for energy production. When one ages, they lose the ability to produce NAD (nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide). Studies have shown that this tissue decreases in mice as they age. However, giving NAD to mice is ineffective. Therefore, scientists looked one step earlier in the NAD supply chain to find NMN (nicotinamide mononucleotide). This method can potentially reduce aging in humans and/or allow aging to occur in a more healthy way.