Posted on 05/07/2013 6:37:14 PM PDT by LibWhacker
If a scientist came to you with a plan to tweak a gland in the center of your brain so that you may live to be 140 years old, you'd probably back out of the room slowly and go to file a police report, because that's creepy. But new research shows that it's not altogether impossible.
A new report from researchers at the Albert Einstein School of Medicine in the Bronx shows that scientists can tinker with the minds of middle-aged mice to extend their life spans. Observing that a certain molecule, called NF-κB, associated with stress response becomes more active in the brain as mice grow older, the scientists injected the rodents with a substance that blocks the molecule. By targeting that bit of brain tissue, the scientists effectively gifted mice a lifespan 20 percent longer than mice who didn't receive the injections.
But here's the crazy part. Not only did the injected mice live longer, the molecule blocker helped counteract the bodily deterioration associated with old age. Not only did it give the mice get longer lives, it slowed the aging process. The scientists call it "aging retardation." That's an important distinction. Harvard Medical School molecular biologist David Sinclair told Nature that the study is "a major breakthrough in aging research."
Six months after receiving the injections, mice performed better on tests of their movement and brain function. They were literally stronger and smarter, with thicker skin and more nimble tails. To all the ego-manaical Walt Disney's of the world, scouring for new ways to cheat death, pay attention to this next part.
The research all takes place in a small gland in the brain just above the brain stem called the hypothalamus. About the size of an almond, the hypothalamus links your nervous system and your endocrine system and synthesizes and releases hormones fundamental to physical growth, physiological development, metabolism regulation and sex drive. It controls your senses of hunger, thirst, fatigue and love for your babies. According to the researchers, it also may be a source of aging.
(Sidenote: The hypothalamus was the entree of choice for the gruesome mutant monster from the horror film The Relic. The movie features the hypothalamus as the sustenance that fuels the franken-beast's murderous rampage.)
To Sinclair, the findings indicate a path to counteractive therapies for people suffering Alzheimer's, arthritis and other age-related cognitive and physical deterioration. But there might be a catch:
"If we’re going to translate this research into medicines that can help people, clearly we cannot start very early in life," he said.
So...how come it's so small?
Oddly written article, I think.
size doesn’t mean anything. function is key.
Does that mean we would have to put up with Pelosi until she’s 140? NO THANK YOU!
who wants to live to 140, for cryin' out loud?
$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$
Ehhhhh. What's two or three more years?
Pelosi at 140. By that time her eyebrows will be on the back of her neck.
Pelosi at 140. By that time her eyebrows will be on the back of her neck.
$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$
And she’ll be sporting a goatee, if you know what I mean.
[[Inside a Mouse’s Brain Lies a Chemical Key to the Fountain of Youth]]
Don’t fall for htis do NOT sign up for the clinical trials- you WILL develope an insatiable cravign for stinky cheese smeared all over metal hingy thingies-
And now, the mouse is a corporate symbol for one of the largest socialist-democrat-"progressive" companies in these United States.
Sometimes it’s time for “enough”. Enough happiness, enough hurt, enough distress, enough pain, etc.
I only feel truly bad when I see a young person die. I remember my one Grandmother, in her late 80’s, asking “when am I going to die?”. Her mind was ready but her body kept holding out.
And this substance is . . . . . ?
NF-κB is found in almost all animal cell types and is involved in cellular responses to stimuli such as stress, cytokines, free radicals, ultraviolet irradiation, oxidized LDL, and bacterial or viral antigens.
NF-κB plays a key role in regulating the immune response to infection (kappa light chains are critical components of immunoglobulins).
Incorrect regulation of NF-κB has been linked to cancer, inflammatory and autoimmune diseases, septic shock, viral infection, and improper immune development.
In brief, NF-κB can be understood to be a protein responsible for cytokine production and cell survival.
Thank you. It didn’t really surprise me though that the substance itself wasn’t named. Maybe a search could turn up some information.
Back to --? I'm hearing that tune...you know, the one that goes "We are stardust...and we got to get ourselves back to the garden."
Stimulate a boomer hypothalamus at your own risk!
;)
http://electronicdesign.com/blog/design-brainwave-combines-eeg-efficiency-elegance
Maked you wonder doesn't it? :)
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