Longevity Research

Engineered Longevity

posted on February 10, 2008

Inside nearly every old person is a kid waiting to bust out. But that’s not what the public perceives. They look at the elderly as disposable over-the-hill behind-the-times entities. So that’s what most become.

I believe people who act old have simply given up. They lost their hope. And by losing hope, they shorten their already limited remaining lifespans. This is tragic, because as a group, the elderly are society’s most valuable asset. "Old people" can be our most valuable resource. We generally acquire more experience, knowledge, wisdom and skills as we age. Rather than putting us "out to pasture" or in nursing homes, wouldn't society be better off if we kept ourselves youthful and productive? That way, we could use all the wisdom, experience and extensive networks to solve the many problems facing us - and to mentor younger generations.

I generally don’t enjoy hanging out with people my age or older, especially the retired ones who tend to focus on the past. The one’s I do spend time with act young and are enthusiastic about life. They keep busy, not just for the sake of being busy, but because life has meaning to them. They have goals, vision and purpose.

Imagine what you could accomplish if you had an extra lifetime and armed with the knowledge you acquired in your first 70 years. Imagine the new perspective the elderly would have on life if they knew they were at the beginning of their lives rather than nearing the end. Imagine how the characters in the movie Cocoon would have acted if they also had their aging clocks reversed.

Now imagine the attitudes of the elderly if they all had the benefit of knowing what you know about the possibilities of age reversal. There would be a groundswell of support for research. Money would flow into companies and research labs developing technologies to extend their lives. The FDA would be overwhelmed with pressure to approve drugs and technologies designed to intervene in the aging process. They would finally recognize aging for the killer disease that it is.

ENGINEERED LONGEVITY

Noteworthy increases in the gene-engineered longevity of laboratory animals have been in the popular science press of late. Following closely on the heels of last week's 50% boost to mouse life span, the folk who managed a tenfold increase in nematode life span (in the species C. elegans) have made their work more accessible to those of us without journal subscriptions:

http://www.fightaging.org/archives/001410.php

"Reis' team discovered that a mutant in the insulin/IGF-1 pathway of C. elegans slows development but ultimately produces adults he described as 'super survivors,' able to resist levels of toxic chemicals that would kill an ordinary worm. Although the adult lifespan of C. elegans is normally only two to three weeks, half of the mutant worms were still alive after six months, with some surviving to nine months. ... These worms continue to look and act like normal worms of one-tenth their age."

Insofar as human longevity science goes, I suspect that the most important near-term result of all this early work in longevity gene engineering will be to get people fired up about investing in serious efforts to extend human life span - and hopefully fired up about removing the regulatory roadblocks that hold back progress towards that goal:

http://www.longevitymeme.org/news/view_news_item.cfm?news_id=3237

Back to Top