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Longevity Futures: Reverse Aging

Cutting-Edge Natural Product TA-65 Turns On Longevity Gene

Leslie J. Farer
In the past, halting the aging process was the goal of longevity enthusiasts. Now, research shows that it is possible to not just stop, but to reverse some of the infirmities associated with growing older and rejuvenate age-damaged tissues. Ensuring the integrity of telomeres, small segments of repeating DNA at the ends of our chromosomes that decay with time, has the potential to greatly extend youthful vitality and vibrant health. A novel concentrated plant extract known as TA-65 acts at the genetic level to maintain the structure of DNA, restore cellular function, and possibly keep you years younger than your chronological age.

What are Telomeres?

Telomeres are strips of DNA located at the ends of chromosomes. They are composed of a few hundred or more repeats of the nucleotide sequence TTAGGG (1,2) (where T= thymine; A = adenine; G= guanine). They act as protective ‘caps’ preventing loss of DNA, and also guard against fusing, fraying and unraveling of chromosomes, (1,3,4) which can expose and damage the genetic material and cause mutations.
Since investigators in the 1930’s coined the term telomere (from the Greek telos for ‘end’ and meros for ‘part’), a massive amount of research has been undertaken to explore the structure and function of these important chromosomal caps. More than 8,000 scientific papers have been written and the 2009 Nobel Prize in physiology and medicine was awarded to three scientists for their work involving telomeres.

Hayflick’s Fifty Year-Old Observation

Back in the 1960’s, geneticist Leonard Hayflick observed dividing human cells and made an important discovery that had a substantial impact on the future of anti-aging research. But before we examine his finding, let’s look very briefly at cell division, or mitosis ─ a fundamental, genetically-controlled process that enables a cell to duplicate itself, including chromosomes (through the process of DNA replication), to form two identical ‘daughter’ cells. Cell division allows an organism to develop and differentiate into an adult from multiple progressive stages beginning with the initial union of reproductive cells (the germ cells, egg and sperm), and after growth and birth, to construct and repair tissues.
Hayflick reported that human cells cultured under perfect conditions in his lab divided only a finite number of times in a progressive course leading to replicative senescence, (5) when they stop dividing altogether and become dysfunctional (the term senescence is roughly equivalent to ‘aged.’). Once cells have reached their proliferation maximum, or so-called Hayflick limit, they stop functioning properly or die through the process of apoptosis. (1,6,7)
Why do cells stop dividing when they reach their Hayflick limits? Is there a cellular mechanism that monitors and counts each cell division up until the final one? And does Hayflick’s observation have any relevance to aging?
In the early 1970’s, Russian scientist Alexey Olovnikov began to answer some of these questions ─ he made the connection between a DNA replication problem involving telomeres and the limitation on cell division reported by Hayflick.

Resveratrol: Life extension effects

When an item makes the New York Times, it becomes part of the historical record. In biological sciences, the journal Nature serves a similar purpose. The definitive article on resveratrol’s life extending effects appeared in Nature this month.

Resveratrol improves health and survival of mice on a high-calorie diet
Nature 444, 337-342 (16 November 2006) doi:10.1038/nature05354; Received 10 August 2006; Accepted 19 October 2006; Published online 1 November 2006
Joseph A. Baur, Kevin J. Pearson, Nathan L. Price, Hamish A. Jamieson, Carles Lerin, Avash Kalra, Vinayakumar V. Prabhu, Joanne S. Allard, Guillermo Lopez-Lluch, Kaitlyn Lewis, Paul J. Pistell, Suresh Poosala, Kevin G. Becker, Olivier Boss, Dana Gwinn, Mingyi Wang, Sharan Ramaswamy, Kenneth W. Fishbein, Richard G. Spencer, Edward G. Lakatta, David Le Couteur, Reuben J. Shaw, Placido Navas, Pere Puigserver, Donald K. Ingram, Rafael de Cabo and David A. Sinclair

Abstract

Resveratrol (3,5,4′-trihydroxystilbene) extends the lifespan of diverse species including Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Caenorhabditis elegans and Drosophila melanogaster. In these organisms, lifespan extension is dependent on Sir2, a conserved deacetylase proposed to underlie the beneficial effects of caloric restriction. Here we show that resveratrol shifts the physiology of middle-aged mice on a high-calorie diet towards that of mice on a standard diet and significantly increases their survival. Resveratrol produces changes associated with longer lifespan, including increased insulin sensitivity, reduced insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-I) levels, increased AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) and peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-gamma coactivator 1alpha (PGC-1alpha) activity, increased mitochondrial number, and improved motor function. Parametric analysis of gene set enrichment revealed that resveratrol opposed the effects of the high-calorie diet in 144 out of 153 significantly altered pathways. These data show that improving general health in mammals using small molecules is an attainable goal, and point to new approaches for treating obesity-related disorders and diseases of ageing.

Live Long Enough to Live Forever

I’m in Denver this week and thought I would check out the physician that Ray Kurzweil works with. Ray is a well known and successful serial entrepreneur in the Boston area. Terry Grossman MD is a leading expert on anti-aging and life extension therapies, and the founder and medical director of Frontier Medical Institute in Denver, Colorado. He is the co-author of a new book, Fantastic Voyage: The Science Behind Radical Life Extension. Dr. Grossman’s co-author is the world-renowned inventor and futurist Ray Kurzweil. Fantastic Voyage is the second book written by Dr. Grossman. In 2000, he wrote the well-received Baby Boomers’ Guide to Living Forever. One of the world’s leading proponents of anti-aging medicine, Dr. Grossman strongly believes that humanity stands on the verge of radical increases in longevity. Through his clinical practice in Denver, he has developed numerous protocols for measuring and modifying biological age and promoting longevity.

As medical director of Frontier Medical Institute, he devotes most of his professional time to running his nutritional medicine practice with emphasis on intravenous vitamin and nutritional therapies, as well as anti-aging medicine. He utilizes bio-identical hormone replacement therapy where indicated. In addition, Dr. Grossman is assistant professor of family practice at The University of Colorado School of Medicine.

I got my Ph.D. at the University of Colorado School of Medicine and was an Assistant Professor of Radiology, Preventive Medicine, and Biometrics there for many years. I’ll post a report on the experience after I go through two days of tests. Sort of like the food critic visiting a high class restaurant.