Life Extension in Old Mice via Transplant of Bone Marrow Cells From Young Mice

The research noted here, in which scientists transplant young stem cells into old mice, is a logical exploration of the bounds of the possible along the lines of parabiosis studies, in which the circulatory systems of old and young individuals are linked. The results demonstrate that regular cell transplants incorporating young bone marrow stem cells can extend life when provided to older individuals, provided there is a close genetic match between donor and recipient. Without that match there was no effect on life span: The method of lifespan extension that is a practical application of the informational theory of aging is proposed. In this theory, the degradation (error accumulation) of the genetic information in cells is considered a main cause of aging. According to it, our method is based on the transplantation of genetically identical (or similar) stem cells with the lower number of genomic errors to the old recipients. For humans and large mammals, this method can be realized by cryopreservation of their own stem cells, taken in a young age, for the later autologous transplantation in old age. To test this method experimentally, we chose laboratory animals of relatively short lifespan (mouse). Because it is difficult to isolate the required amount of the stem cells (e.g., bone marrow) without significant damage for animals, we used the bone marrow transplantation from sacrificed inbred young donors, males and females of 1.5-3 months. Bone marrow transplantation (2 ×...
Source: Fight Aging! - Category: Research Authors: Tags: Daily News Source Type: blogs