Telomeres – the invisible elixir of youth

Subject: Telomeres – the invisible elixir of youth Fri Aug 01, 2014 8:49 pm

Since antiquity, society has obsessed over the visible signs of growing old – wrinkles, grey hair and saggy skin. But there's another kind of ageing worth your attention because scientists are starting to to learn how to reverse it.

Telomeres – the invisible elixir of youth 1406885263445

Telomeres – the invisible elixir of youth 1406885263445

This week, a group of international researchers, including Nobel prize-winning Australian molecular biologist Elizabeth Blackburn, announced that a healthy lifestyle, comprising regular sleep, exercise and a balanced diet, could offset ageing inside the body's cells.

Key to youthful cells are special molecules of DNA called telomeres, which are protective caps that stop the coils of genetic information that instruct almost every cell in the body from fraying.

Blackburn, who shared her 2009 Nobel prize with two colleagues, discovered that without telomeres, cells could not divide and the body could not grow. Essential to the telomeres function is a special enzyme called telomerase, which replenishes the DNA caps as cells divide.

http://www.smh.com.au/technology/sci-tech/telomeres--the-invisible-elixir-of-youth-20140801-zz7b5.html

Telomeres – the invisible elixir of youth

Telomeres – the invisible elixir of youth

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