A group of Israeli researchers has succeeded in slowing down the aging process by improving signaling from the VEGF protein, which leads to depletion of blood vessels.
What’s happening
- A group of scientists at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem has found a way to slow down the aging process in mice by increasing the activity of the VEGF protein. The research results were published in the scientific journal Science.
- It is noted that the aging of blood vessels plays a decisive role in accelerating aging processes, and a decrease in the activity of the VEGF protein (vascular endothelial growth factor) is a direct reason for the deterioration of the cardiovascular system.
- The authors of the study were able to find a molecular mechanism that “turns off” the activity of VEGF with age, which leads to depletion of blood vessels and the development of various diseases. By restoring VEGF signaling, the team was able to prevent the capillary loss, improve circulation and increase life expectancy.
- Tests in mice have shown staggering results – the median lifespan was increased by 48% and 39% in females and males, respectively, and the maximum – by 20% and 15%.
- Scientists suggest that regulation of VEGF activity can lead to an increase in the duration and improvement of the quality of life in all mammals, including humans.
What does it mean
With the development of medicine, the quality of life of people has improved, and at the same time, its duration has increased. However, researchers from all over the world are still trying to decipher the mechanisms of slowing down the aging process in order to save older people from the “diseases of old age” and prolong a period of healthy life.
Currently, the world scientific community is actively discussing this topic, and each study presents its own “key” to longevity. For example, the Russian biotech startup Gero, together with the Roswell Park Cancer Center in Buffalo, published a study according to which life expectancy depends on resistance to stress. The authors of the work believe that it is precisely the increase in the ability to recover from the stress that can significantly prolong a person’s life and improve its quality.
In general, most experts agree that an increase in life expectancy is possible due to the development of modern technologies.
“Even if we do not take into account what may still be discovered in the next five, ten, twenty years, the technologies that already exist today can increase the life expectancy of a person. Some of them are not yet available to many, but they will certainly become. Some are already in the third phase of human trials, ” said Jim Mellon, founder of investment firm Juvenescence.