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Tech & Science
In a scientific discovery that could change anti-aging strategies, a recent study conducted by the University of Sheffield found that inhibiting a key cellular stress signal might be the magic key to a longer life.
In a scientific discovery that could change anti-aging strategies, a recent study conducted by the University of Sheffield found that inhibiting a key cellular stress signal might be the magic key to a longer life. This new discovery challenges previous assumptions that encouraged exposing cells to mild stress to stimulate their vitality, confirming that the opposite is true in complex organisms.
The study, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, focuses on a molecular network known as the "Integrated Stress Response" (ISR). This system operates within cells as an "emergency" mechanism to deal with crises such as nutrient deficiency or viral attacks. While it was previously believed that slightly activating this system extended lifespan, experiments on fruit flies proved that suppressing this pathway actually led to an extension of lifespan.
The researchers conducted extensive experiments involving tens of thousands of fruit flies, using precise genetic tools. The results showed that increased stress response activity led to shorter lifespans for the flies. In contrast, when this genetic pathway was inhibited, the flies lived longer and in good health, even under harsh conditions such as dietary changes, which prompts a reconsideration of previous study results conducted on simpler organisms like yeast and worms.
Dr. Miriam Simon from the University of Sheffield explained that this research aims to target the aging process itself. With the increasing number of elderly people in societies, there is an urgent need to find solutions that reduce the economic and care burdens associated with aging, noting that fruit flies were chosen due to their short lifespan, which allows for accurate monitoring of life extension results.
The research team is currently seeking to test the ability of some existing drugs to achieve the same effect as genetic modifications in suppressing the stress pathway. For her part, co-researcher Miriam Gotz affirmed that this biological pathway (ISR) is a crucial focus in cancer and immunology research, and a deeper understanding of it could lead to the development of effective treatments for age-related diseases, opening up promising medical prospects that were not previously available.
