New biological clock will help stop aging

People age, but scientists are not very goodunderstand this process. A study by scientists at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) showed that the biological clocks built into our genes can help us figure out how to stop the body's aging process. The work, published in the journal Genome Biology, opens up new possibilities in the treatment of cancer and stem cell research.

If earlier the biological age of a person canwas determined by saliva, hormones and telomeres, the new technique allows you to do this by internal organs, tissues and cell types. A surprise for scientists was the fact that the body ages in parts, for example, the glandular tissue of the female breast becomes unusable faster than other body tissues, writes Medical Xpress.

An objective way to fight aginghis measurements. My goal is to help scientists better understand what accelerates and slows down the aging process of a human body, ”explains Steve Horvath, professor of human genetics and biostatistics at UCLA.

Horvath focused on a process known asDNA methylation (modification of a DNA molecule without changing its sequence). Having studied the data of about 8000 samples of 51 types of tissues and cells collected by other scientists who studied healthy and cancerous tissues, he determined the dependence of the degree of methylation on age. Having set the clock at 353 points of DNA, the scientist compared the biological age of tissues with their chronological age. To his surprise, the biological clock showed high accuracy in the tissues of the brain, heart, lungs, liver, kidneys and cartilage.

It would be great to develop a watch that can stop time inside our body, ”says Horvath.

At the same time, the biological age of the breast tissue was different from the chronological age in a big way.

Healthy mammary tissue 2-3 years olderother tissues of the female body. If a woman has breast cancer, then healthy tissue near the tumor is on average 12 years older than other tissues, ”he adds.

The results of the study help to understand whybreast cancer is the most common form of cancer in women. On average, tumor tissue is 36 years older than healthy tissue. This is why age is a major risk factor for cancer, with both sexes.

According to Horvath, reset the biological clock tozero can be done by reprogramming adult cells into pluripotent ones, which will make them look like embryonic cells (newborns) that are of zero age.

In principle, the discovery of Horvath proves the possibility of zeroing a person’s biological clock.

The question is, do biological clocks controlprocesses leading to aging of the body. If so, the watch will become an important biological marker for exploring new therapeutic methods for preserving youth, ”says Howard.

In addition, the researcher found that the speed of the watch depends on the age of the person. In a newborn, the clock is ticking very quickly, then by the age of 20 they slow down and gain a constant stroke.

A complete surprise for the scientist was thatcells of children with progeria (a genetic disease leading to premature aging) look quite normal and reflect their chronological age.

UCLA has filed a preliminary patent for “watches”Croatian. " In the future, the researcher plans to study in more detail the possibility of delaying aging and the risk of developing cancer through zeroing the biological clock.

Scientists want to give immortality not only people, but also electronics.