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LONGEVITY MEME NEWSLETTER
December 17 2007
The Longevity Meme Newsletter is a weekly e-mail containing news, opinions
and happenings for people interested in healthy life extension: making use
of diet, lifestyle choices, technology and proven medical advances to live
healthy, longer lives. To subscribe or unsubscribe from the Longevity Meme
Newsletter, please visit http://www.longevity...org/newsletter/
______________________________
CONTENTS
- Following Up On The Cato Unbound Discussion
- Progress Reports From the Methuselah Foundation
- Discussion
- Latest Healthy Life Extension Headlines
FOLLOWING UP ON THE CATO UNBOUND DISCUSSION
A collection of links and excerpts from the recent Cato Unbound debate on
radical life extension can be found in this Fight Aging! post:
http://www.fightagin...ives/001371.php
You'll find intelligent commentary on the Cato Unbound essays and reaction
pieces out in the blogosphere too; I'm always pleased to see growing
discussion of the path to healthy life extension. Ongoing conversation, the
broader the better, is a necessary foundation to raising support and
building a better platform for research and fundraising.
http://www.fightagin...ives/001372.php
"If a technology existed to eliminate the physical effects of aging, it
would be a boon to mankind, and it would be atrocious to forbid it. People
should be allowed to experience aging if they wish, of course, but if
science could make it optional, then the option should be available. And
yes, I would take it. I would definitely want to live a thousand years or
more. I would want all of my loved ones with me, and my only regret would
be that some of them are already gone and cannot be. You and I are among
the first of our species for whom physical immortality is even an outside
possibility, but if the choice ever came up, I assure you that I would go
for it."
PROGRESS REPORTS FROM THE METHUSELAH FOUNDATION
The Methuselah Foundation kicks off a newsletter series with an update on
progress in Strategies for Engineered Negligible Senescence (SENS) research
and development of the Mprize competition for rejuvenation science:
http://blog.methusel...newslett_1.html
The scientific summaries defy easy excerpting - I encourage you to read the
full progress report for MitoSENS and LysoSENS research programs. Looking
forward to 2008, new research programs for other strands of SENS are in the
pipeline, enabled by the steady increase in Foundation funding:
"Most people are aware of the amyloid deposits associated with Alzheimer's
Disease: they are the main constituent of senile plaques, the aggregates
that accumulate in the spaces between neurons as the disease progresses.
Encouraging progress is being made in stimulating the body's immune system
to eliminate these deposits. However, amyloid composed of different
proteins also accumulates in other tissues during aging. Progress in
removing these other amyloids has been much less intensive thus far, even
though they are, if anything, more clearly linked to the progression of
age-related illness than senile plaques are to Alzheimer's. I have been in
preliminary discussion with one of the leaders in this area, with a view to
initiating work as soon as possible.
"WILT, the anti-cancer therapy incorporated into SENS, entails (among other
things) the elimination of genes for the enzyme telomerase, which allows
cancer cells to divide indefinitely without losing material from the ends
of their chromosomes. Unfortunately, about 10% of cancers solve this
problem in a different way, not using telomerase, via a process known as
ALT, for alternative lengthening of telomeres. Even more unfortunately, ALT
is still only very poorly understood. Recently, however, some intriguing
observations in two different organs have given good reason to suspect a
hitherto unsuspected gene. A relatively simple sequence of initial
experiments could test this, and I am already in discussions with a leading
ALT researcher concerning the possibility of launching this project."
Beyond the progress in Foundation-funded SENS research, researchers
continue to sign up to compete for the Mprize for rejuvenation research:
"To broaden the field of competing research, a focused program was
initiated this year to actively recruit new competitors, expanding the
'mouse race' for breakthroughs in preventive and regenerative anti-aging
biotechnology. Spearheading this campaign is Elliot Bergman, Ph.D., of
biotech consulting firm ChemLifeSciences, as the Foundation's Competitor
Development Coordinator.
"Elliot's efforts to date have brought in four new competitors for the
Prize, for a total of eleven scientific teams independently racing to
extend the lives of their furry subjects as of this writing. The four most
recent additions are Professor Andrzej Bartke of Southern Illinois
University; Professor Craig Cooney of the University of Arkansas for
Medical Sciences; Alan Cash, founder of Terra Biological LLC; and Elise
Sacane, co-founder of Neural Learning Systems. Each of these teams is
testing a different anti-aging strategy, creating exactly the kind of
wide-open, multi-strategy competition needed to weed out ineffective
approaches and bring successful therapies into the spotlight.
"Several other potential competitors have been identified and are being
qualified for participation. We hope to have a total of 130-15 competitors
by the first quarter of 2008."
DISCUSSION
The highlights and headlines from the past week follow below. If you have
comments for us, please do send e-mail to newsletter@longevitymeme.org
Remember - if you like this newsletter, the chances are that your friends
will find it useful too. Forward it on, or post a copy to your favorite
online communities. Encourage the people you know to pitch in and make a
difference to the future of health and longevity!
Reason
reason@longevitymeme.org
______________________________
LATEST HEALTHY LIFE EXTENSION HEADLINES
To view commentary on the latest news headlines complete with links and
references, please visit the daily news section of the Longevity Meme:
http://www.longevitymeme.org/news/
Reporting Progress at the Methuselah Foundation (December 14 2007)
http://blog.methusel...newslett_1.html
The Methuselah Foundation fills us in on progress to date: "We are
currently sponsoring research in two of the seven strands of the SENS
program; the preventing the harm caused by mitochondrial mutations
(MitoSENS) and degrading damaging long-lived cellular debris (LysoSENS) ...
our teams have already seen interesting results and are moving forward
rapidly. ... When these projects began in the summer of 2005, there was no
strong evidence to suggest that any enzymes or organisms degrading
intracellular junk existed in nature [but] reseach volunteers had
successfully cultured [7-ketocholesterol (7KC)] degraders before the end of
2005. ... 2006 saw further characterization of the 7KC degraders and
corroboration of the results. In summer 2007, six undergraduate research
assistants and one additional PhD candidate [helped] with synthesizing
additional target compounds, such as A2E and CML (a major [advanced
glycation end-product]). ... [today, researchers] are preparing to move
them into a cell model of age-related macular degeneration for initial
safety and efficacy testing. Various other projects [are] at earlier
stages. Novel targets include artificial lipofuscin and the infamous
glucosepane AGE-crosslink."
Neurodegeneration and Altered Autophagy (December 14 2007)
http://www.scienceda...71214144956.htm
More evidence for autophagy as a good thing - above and beyond its
apparently pivotal role in calorie restriction benefits - from
ScienceDaily: "Suppressing a cellular cleanup mechanism known as autophagy
can accelerate the accumulation of protein aggregates that leads to neural
degeneration. [Scientists] report for the first time that the opposite is
true as well: Boosting autophagy in the nervous system of fruit flies
prevented the age-dependent accumulation of cellular damage in neurons and
promoted longevity. ... We discovered that levels of several key pathway
members are reduced in Drosophila neural tissue as a normal part of aging.
Which suggests there is an age-dependent suppression of autophagy that may
be a contributing factor for human neurodegenerative disorders like
Alzheimer's disease. ... Keeping cells free of damaged molecules is
critical for neurons because unlike many cells, they do not divide or
replace themselves once created at birth. ... They rely on autophagy
together with other clearance and detoxification pathways to keep
themselves healthy and functioning for decades."
An Interview With Michael Rose (December 13 2007)
http://www.genengnew...tem.aspx?id=236
Gene Engineering News is broadening its scope with podcasts on late, such
as this interview with researcher Michael Rose: "science is now gaining a
better understanding of the human aging process, with the ultimate goal of
exerting some control over it. During this week's podcast, Dr. Michael
Rose, developer of the long-lived Methuselah fruit fly line and one of the
pioneers in aging research, offers his insights on the science of aging. He
addresses such questions as 'why we age' and 'are aging and age-related
disease synonymous?' Does the concept of humans one day living to be
150-years-old or more lie in the realm of science or science fiction? A
specialist in evolutionary biology, Dr. Rose talks about how can advances
in evolutionary biology can help us postpone aging. He discusses why severe
caloric restriction will not substantially increase the lifespans of humans
although it often does so in animal models. Dr. Rose also presents his case
that there is a serious, hardcore, mathematical, scientific theory that
underlies aging, but that a paucity of mathematically-inclined biologists
is inhibiting discussion and further advances in the scientific study of
aging based [on] this theory."
Ouroboros On p53 Decline and Late-Life Cancer (December 13 2007)
http://ouroboros.wor...te-life-cancer/
From Chris Patil Ouroboros: "If p53 were to somehow go AWOL in a cell, it
would bode poorly for cancer prevention. Lacking this critical checkpoint
control, genetically damaged cells could go on cycling, perhaps developing
additional genomic changes that further encourage unrestricted growth, and
eventually becoming frankly neoplastic. A recent study from Arnie Levine's
lab shows that the p53 response to one form of genotoxic stress (ionizing
radiation) becomes less efficient [in] old mice. If this finding is general
to other humans, it could partially explain why the risk of tumors
increases exponentially with age. ... I wonder whether a contributing
factor might be adaptation of the signaling pathways involved. Signaling
pathways almost always involve some negative feedback; among other things,
this serves to prevent inappropriate activation of a pathway in response to
a low baseline level of stimulus, to preserve the dynamic range of the
system and reset the threshold so that it can be triggered only by really
noteworthy events." Patil goes on to suggest an off the cuff theory as to
how declines in p53 - and increased propensity to cancer - might operate,
some tests of the hypothesis, and how the system might be reset if true.
Xenotransplanting New Mitochondria (December 12 2007)
http://pmid.us/18069915
I think you'll agree this is an intriguing addition to the stable of
potential methods to replace damaged mitochondria, and thus remove their
contribution to aging and age-related disease: "Mitochondrial DNA [or
mtDNA] mutations are the direct cause of several physiological disorders
and are also associated with the aging process. The modest progress made
over the past two decades towards manipulating the mitochondrial genome and
understanding its function within living mammalian cells means that cures
for mitochondrial DNA mutations are still elusive. Here, we report that
transformed mammalian cells internalize exogenous isolated mitochondria
upon simple co-incubation. We first demonstrate the physical presence of
internalized mitochondria within recipient cells using fluorescence
microscopy. Second, we show that xenogenic transfer of murine mitochondria
into human cells lacking functional mitochondria can functionally restore
respiration in cells lacking mtDNA." I'm sure you can speculate on how one
would build therapies upon this basis, should it be made safe and reliable.
Kevin Dewalt's End Aging YouTube Challenge (December 12 2007)
http://kevindewalt.c...2/09/end-aging/
From Kevin Dewalt: "My End Aging Challenge is simple: Create and post a
reply to this video on YouTube explaining why you support Dr. Aubrey de
Grey's and the Methuselah Foundation's mission to end aging. I will donate
$10 to the Methuselah Foundation for every video response. If you have the
means, I also suggest that you offer in your video response to match me
with a donation of your own for every video. After you shoot your video,
follow this link to post your video reply." Good show. If you want
something done, no matter how daunting or large the task, the best way to
go about it is to get out there and help make it happen. Put your shoulder
to the wheel and lead by example. It matters not the size and weight of
that wheel, as many hands make light work. It matters greatly that you show
that the job exists, and that someone is willing to work at getting it
done. Where is one willing worker exists, there will soon be more.
Tissue Engineering From Now To 2021 (December 11 2007)
http://www.lieberton...9/ten.2007.0335
This PDF analysis looks at challenges and advances for the next 15 years of
tissue engineering, as seen by scientists in the field: "highly strategic
issues often may not lie at the forefront of our day-to-day conception of
the most important foci in the field, making such analyses more important
to undertake. For example, the strategically most important category,
angiogenic control [or engineering blood vessels], was supported by only
four contributed ideas. However, its dominance over nine other concepts and
its low level of present progress propelled it to the top of the list of
strategic concepts. Clearly, mastering the control of angiogenesis will be
at the heart of any attempts to grow larger tissue engineered constructs
than have thus far been achievable. This will apply whether such growth
occurs in vitro or within the body as a response to cell and/or scaffold
implantation. Stem cell science is the second most strategic concept. [It]
may well be that the understanding and control of stem cell development
will enable us to short circuit some of the tissue engineering methods used
heretofore - perhaps allowing the concurrent growth of vascular systems
with parenchymal tissues."
Methuselah Foundation Pledge Total Tops $10 Million (December 11 2007)
http://blog.methusel...n_pledge_t.html
From the Methuselah Foundation: "With the flood of generous year-end
donations during this time of triple matching challenges, we're pleased to
announce that the grand total of pledges and donations to the Methuselah
Foundation has passed $10 million! This counts the Mprize for longevity
science, SENS research - which itself recently passed the $5 million mark -
and expense donations. This wonderful goal has been accomplished in just
four years due to the hard work and generosity of many hundreds of people,
volunteers, donors and supporters. We thank you all, and look forward to
keeping up the accelerating pace over the next four years." The Methuselah
Foundation is one of the great success stories of the transhumanist
community. People moved beyond just talking about the future and stepped up
to help shape that future. The $10 million dollar mark is a great
milestone, and an impossibly distant milestone when we were looking at Dave
Gobel's idea for the Three Hundred back in 2004 - but here we are, and
onward we go. Thank you all.
Alcor Critical Care Medical Panel Transcript (December 10 2007)
http://www.accelerat...ple-blog/?p=327
The People Database blog continues a sterling job of recording the dialogue
of the healthy life extension community: "There are many ways we can define
cryonics. Sometimes it is presented as a scientific experiment done on
humans. The direction that we are headed in now is to present it as a
long-term form of critical care medicine. ... The point is, doctors tend to
be a rather stilted lot. They don't necessarily embrace things that work
just because they work. They have to go through a kind of culturalization.
As far as cryonics goes, leaving the realm of science fiction and entering
the realm of critical care medicine, the entry point will be fairly
rigorous and will involve randomized double-blind studies to show
potential. Of course, you have to remember that the whole point of science
is imagination. This is imaginative. Anything that is imaginative is
welcome. If it can be shown to have some scientific rationality, if it can
be shown to make sense, eventually it will slowly blend into a very stilted
bunch of people who don't accept things readily."
SENS Research Donations Tripled Until Year End (December 10 2007)
http://blog.methusel...s_research.html
Good news from the Methuselah Foundation: "You might recall in 2006 that
Peter Thiel made a $3 million Matching Challenge to SENS Research, where he
matches 50% of donations to research until the end of 2009. Well, our
performance and Thiel's example have prompted a supporter and Three Hundred
Member, Michael Cooper, to join in. He is offering a $25,000 Matching
Challenge of his own until the end of this month. ... Your donations to
speed research into repairing the damage of aging and extending the healthy
human lifespan will be matched 2-to-1 until the end of 2007, expanding your
donation threefold. ... The two presently open Donation Challenges match
donations to SENS Research cumulatively. That is, newer matching pledges
are evaluated first and the amount matched is added to the incoming
donation before the amount for the next matching pledge is calculated,
magnifying the value of the donation substantially. At present, a $100
donation (enough for a free autographed copy of 'Ending Aging') is
leveraged to $300!" If you've been thinking about stepping up to help make
a real difference to the field of aging research, now is the time. If not
now, when?
______________________________
If you have comments for us, please do send e-mail to
newsletter@longevitymeme.org.
December 17 2007
The Longevity Meme Newsletter is a weekly e-mail containing news, opinions
and happenings for people interested in healthy life extension: making use
of diet, lifestyle choices, technology and proven medical advances to live
healthy, longer lives. To subscribe or unsubscribe from the Longevity Meme
Newsletter, please visit http://www.longevity...org/newsletter/
______________________________
CONTENTS
- Following Up On The Cato Unbound Discussion
- Progress Reports From the Methuselah Foundation
- Discussion
- Latest Healthy Life Extension Headlines
FOLLOWING UP ON THE CATO UNBOUND DISCUSSION
A collection of links and excerpts from the recent Cato Unbound debate on
radical life extension can be found in this Fight Aging! post:
http://www.fightagin...ives/001371.php
You'll find intelligent commentary on the Cato Unbound essays and reaction
pieces out in the blogosphere too; I'm always pleased to see growing
discussion of the path to healthy life extension. Ongoing conversation, the
broader the better, is a necessary foundation to raising support and
building a better platform for research and fundraising.
http://www.fightagin...ives/001372.php
"If a technology existed to eliminate the physical effects of aging, it
would be a boon to mankind, and it would be atrocious to forbid it. People
should be allowed to experience aging if they wish, of course, but if
science could make it optional, then the option should be available. And
yes, I would take it. I would definitely want to live a thousand years or
more. I would want all of my loved ones with me, and my only regret would
be that some of them are already gone and cannot be. You and I are among
the first of our species for whom physical immortality is even an outside
possibility, but if the choice ever came up, I assure you that I would go
for it."
PROGRESS REPORTS FROM THE METHUSELAH FOUNDATION
The Methuselah Foundation kicks off a newsletter series with an update on
progress in Strategies for Engineered Negligible Senescence (SENS) research
and development of the Mprize competition for rejuvenation science:
http://blog.methusel...newslett_1.html
The scientific summaries defy easy excerpting - I encourage you to read the
full progress report for MitoSENS and LysoSENS research programs. Looking
forward to 2008, new research programs for other strands of SENS are in the
pipeline, enabled by the steady increase in Foundation funding:
"Most people are aware of the amyloid deposits associated with Alzheimer's
Disease: they are the main constituent of senile plaques, the aggregates
that accumulate in the spaces between neurons as the disease progresses.
Encouraging progress is being made in stimulating the body's immune system
to eliminate these deposits. However, amyloid composed of different
proteins also accumulates in other tissues during aging. Progress in
removing these other amyloids has been much less intensive thus far, even
though they are, if anything, more clearly linked to the progression of
age-related illness than senile plaques are to Alzheimer's. I have been in
preliminary discussion with one of the leaders in this area, with a view to
initiating work as soon as possible.
"WILT, the anti-cancer therapy incorporated into SENS, entails (among other
things) the elimination of genes for the enzyme telomerase, which allows
cancer cells to divide indefinitely without losing material from the ends
of their chromosomes. Unfortunately, about 10% of cancers solve this
problem in a different way, not using telomerase, via a process known as
ALT, for alternative lengthening of telomeres. Even more unfortunately, ALT
is still only very poorly understood. Recently, however, some intriguing
observations in two different organs have given good reason to suspect a
hitherto unsuspected gene. A relatively simple sequence of initial
experiments could test this, and I am already in discussions with a leading
ALT researcher concerning the possibility of launching this project."
Beyond the progress in Foundation-funded SENS research, researchers
continue to sign up to compete for the Mprize for rejuvenation research:
"To broaden the field of competing research, a focused program was
initiated this year to actively recruit new competitors, expanding the
'mouse race' for breakthroughs in preventive and regenerative anti-aging
biotechnology. Spearheading this campaign is Elliot Bergman, Ph.D., of
biotech consulting firm ChemLifeSciences, as the Foundation's Competitor
Development Coordinator.
"Elliot's efforts to date have brought in four new competitors for the
Prize, for a total of eleven scientific teams independently racing to
extend the lives of their furry subjects as of this writing. The four most
recent additions are Professor Andrzej Bartke of Southern Illinois
University; Professor Craig Cooney of the University of Arkansas for
Medical Sciences; Alan Cash, founder of Terra Biological LLC; and Elise
Sacane, co-founder of Neural Learning Systems. Each of these teams is
testing a different anti-aging strategy, creating exactly the kind of
wide-open, multi-strategy competition needed to weed out ineffective
approaches and bring successful therapies into the spotlight.
"Several other potential competitors have been identified and are being
qualified for participation. We hope to have a total of 130-15 competitors
by the first quarter of 2008."
DISCUSSION
The highlights and headlines from the past week follow below. If you have
comments for us, please do send e-mail to newsletter@longevitymeme.org
Remember - if you like this newsletter, the chances are that your friends
will find it useful too. Forward it on, or post a copy to your favorite
online communities. Encourage the people you know to pitch in and make a
difference to the future of health and longevity!
Reason
reason@longevitymeme.org
______________________________
LATEST HEALTHY LIFE EXTENSION HEADLINES
To view commentary on the latest news headlines complete with links and
references, please visit the daily news section of the Longevity Meme:
http://www.longevitymeme.org/news/
Reporting Progress at the Methuselah Foundation (December 14 2007)
http://blog.methusel...newslett_1.html
The Methuselah Foundation fills us in on progress to date: "We are
currently sponsoring research in two of the seven strands of the SENS
program; the preventing the harm caused by mitochondrial mutations
(MitoSENS) and degrading damaging long-lived cellular debris (LysoSENS) ...
our teams have already seen interesting results and are moving forward
rapidly. ... When these projects began in the summer of 2005, there was no
strong evidence to suggest that any enzymes or organisms degrading
intracellular junk existed in nature [but] reseach volunteers had
successfully cultured [7-ketocholesterol (7KC)] degraders before the end of
2005. ... 2006 saw further characterization of the 7KC degraders and
corroboration of the results. In summer 2007, six undergraduate research
assistants and one additional PhD candidate [helped] with synthesizing
additional target compounds, such as A2E and CML (a major [advanced
glycation end-product]). ... [today, researchers] are preparing to move
them into a cell model of age-related macular degeneration for initial
safety and efficacy testing. Various other projects [are] at earlier
stages. Novel targets include artificial lipofuscin and the infamous
glucosepane AGE-crosslink."
Neurodegeneration and Altered Autophagy (December 14 2007)
http://www.scienceda...71214144956.htm
More evidence for autophagy as a good thing - above and beyond its
apparently pivotal role in calorie restriction benefits - from
ScienceDaily: "Suppressing a cellular cleanup mechanism known as autophagy
can accelerate the accumulation of protein aggregates that leads to neural
degeneration. [Scientists] report for the first time that the opposite is
true as well: Boosting autophagy in the nervous system of fruit flies
prevented the age-dependent accumulation of cellular damage in neurons and
promoted longevity. ... We discovered that levels of several key pathway
members are reduced in Drosophila neural tissue as a normal part of aging.
Which suggests there is an age-dependent suppression of autophagy that may
be a contributing factor for human neurodegenerative disorders like
Alzheimer's disease. ... Keeping cells free of damaged molecules is
critical for neurons because unlike many cells, they do not divide or
replace themselves once created at birth. ... They rely on autophagy
together with other clearance and detoxification pathways to keep
themselves healthy and functioning for decades."
An Interview With Michael Rose (December 13 2007)
http://www.genengnew...tem.aspx?id=236
Gene Engineering News is broadening its scope with podcasts on late, such
as this interview with researcher Michael Rose: "science is now gaining a
better understanding of the human aging process, with the ultimate goal of
exerting some control over it. During this week's podcast, Dr. Michael
Rose, developer of the long-lived Methuselah fruit fly line and one of the
pioneers in aging research, offers his insights on the science of aging. He
addresses such questions as 'why we age' and 'are aging and age-related
disease synonymous?' Does the concept of humans one day living to be
150-years-old or more lie in the realm of science or science fiction? A
specialist in evolutionary biology, Dr. Rose talks about how can advances
in evolutionary biology can help us postpone aging. He discusses why severe
caloric restriction will not substantially increase the lifespans of humans
although it often does so in animal models. Dr. Rose also presents his case
that there is a serious, hardcore, mathematical, scientific theory that
underlies aging, but that a paucity of mathematically-inclined biologists
is inhibiting discussion and further advances in the scientific study of
aging based [on] this theory."
Ouroboros On p53 Decline and Late-Life Cancer (December 13 2007)
http://ouroboros.wor...te-life-cancer/
From Chris Patil Ouroboros: "If p53 were to somehow go AWOL in a cell, it
would bode poorly for cancer prevention. Lacking this critical checkpoint
control, genetically damaged cells could go on cycling, perhaps developing
additional genomic changes that further encourage unrestricted growth, and
eventually becoming frankly neoplastic. A recent study from Arnie Levine's
lab shows that the p53 response to one form of genotoxic stress (ionizing
radiation) becomes less efficient [in] old mice. If this finding is general
to other humans, it could partially explain why the risk of tumors
increases exponentially with age. ... I wonder whether a contributing
factor might be adaptation of the signaling pathways involved. Signaling
pathways almost always involve some negative feedback; among other things,
this serves to prevent inappropriate activation of a pathway in response to
a low baseline level of stimulus, to preserve the dynamic range of the
system and reset the threshold so that it can be triggered only by really
noteworthy events." Patil goes on to suggest an off the cuff theory as to
how declines in p53 - and increased propensity to cancer - might operate,
some tests of the hypothesis, and how the system might be reset if true.
Xenotransplanting New Mitochondria (December 12 2007)
http://pmid.us/18069915
I think you'll agree this is an intriguing addition to the stable of
potential methods to replace damaged mitochondria, and thus remove their
contribution to aging and age-related disease: "Mitochondrial DNA [or
mtDNA] mutations are the direct cause of several physiological disorders
and are also associated with the aging process. The modest progress made
over the past two decades towards manipulating the mitochondrial genome and
understanding its function within living mammalian cells means that cures
for mitochondrial DNA mutations are still elusive. Here, we report that
transformed mammalian cells internalize exogenous isolated mitochondria
upon simple co-incubation. We first demonstrate the physical presence of
internalized mitochondria within recipient cells using fluorescence
microscopy. Second, we show that xenogenic transfer of murine mitochondria
into human cells lacking functional mitochondria can functionally restore
respiration in cells lacking mtDNA." I'm sure you can speculate on how one
would build therapies upon this basis, should it be made safe and reliable.
Kevin Dewalt's End Aging YouTube Challenge (December 12 2007)
http://kevindewalt.c...2/09/end-aging/
From Kevin Dewalt: "My End Aging Challenge is simple: Create and post a
reply to this video on YouTube explaining why you support Dr. Aubrey de
Grey's and the Methuselah Foundation's mission to end aging. I will donate
$10 to the Methuselah Foundation for every video response. If you have the
means, I also suggest that you offer in your video response to match me
with a donation of your own for every video. After you shoot your video,
follow this link to post your video reply." Good show. If you want
something done, no matter how daunting or large the task, the best way to
go about it is to get out there and help make it happen. Put your shoulder
to the wheel and lead by example. It matters not the size and weight of
that wheel, as many hands make light work. It matters greatly that you show
that the job exists, and that someone is willing to work at getting it
done. Where is one willing worker exists, there will soon be more.
Tissue Engineering From Now To 2021 (December 11 2007)
http://www.lieberton...9/ten.2007.0335
This PDF analysis looks at challenges and advances for the next 15 years of
tissue engineering, as seen by scientists in the field: "highly strategic
issues often may not lie at the forefront of our day-to-day conception of
the most important foci in the field, making such analyses more important
to undertake. For example, the strategically most important category,
angiogenic control [or engineering blood vessels], was supported by only
four contributed ideas. However, its dominance over nine other concepts and
its low level of present progress propelled it to the top of the list of
strategic concepts. Clearly, mastering the control of angiogenesis will be
at the heart of any attempts to grow larger tissue engineered constructs
than have thus far been achievable. This will apply whether such growth
occurs in vitro or within the body as a response to cell and/or scaffold
implantation. Stem cell science is the second most strategic concept. [It]
may well be that the understanding and control of stem cell development
will enable us to short circuit some of the tissue engineering methods used
heretofore - perhaps allowing the concurrent growth of vascular systems
with parenchymal tissues."
Methuselah Foundation Pledge Total Tops $10 Million (December 11 2007)
http://blog.methusel...n_pledge_t.html
From the Methuselah Foundation: "With the flood of generous year-end
donations during this time of triple matching challenges, we're pleased to
announce that the grand total of pledges and donations to the Methuselah
Foundation has passed $10 million! This counts the Mprize for longevity
science, SENS research - which itself recently passed the $5 million mark -
and expense donations. This wonderful goal has been accomplished in just
four years due to the hard work and generosity of many hundreds of people,
volunteers, donors and supporters. We thank you all, and look forward to
keeping up the accelerating pace over the next four years." The Methuselah
Foundation is one of the great success stories of the transhumanist
community. People moved beyond just talking about the future and stepped up
to help shape that future. The $10 million dollar mark is a great
milestone, and an impossibly distant milestone when we were looking at Dave
Gobel's idea for the Three Hundred back in 2004 - but here we are, and
onward we go. Thank you all.
Alcor Critical Care Medical Panel Transcript (December 10 2007)
http://www.accelerat...ple-blog/?p=327
The People Database blog continues a sterling job of recording the dialogue
of the healthy life extension community: "There are many ways we can define
cryonics. Sometimes it is presented as a scientific experiment done on
humans. The direction that we are headed in now is to present it as a
long-term form of critical care medicine. ... The point is, doctors tend to
be a rather stilted lot. They don't necessarily embrace things that work
just because they work. They have to go through a kind of culturalization.
As far as cryonics goes, leaving the realm of science fiction and entering
the realm of critical care medicine, the entry point will be fairly
rigorous and will involve randomized double-blind studies to show
potential. Of course, you have to remember that the whole point of science
is imagination. This is imaginative. Anything that is imaginative is
welcome. If it can be shown to have some scientific rationality, if it can
be shown to make sense, eventually it will slowly blend into a very stilted
bunch of people who don't accept things readily."
SENS Research Donations Tripled Until Year End (December 10 2007)
http://blog.methusel...s_research.html
Good news from the Methuselah Foundation: "You might recall in 2006 that
Peter Thiel made a $3 million Matching Challenge to SENS Research, where he
matches 50% of donations to research until the end of 2009. Well, our
performance and Thiel's example have prompted a supporter and Three Hundred
Member, Michael Cooper, to join in. He is offering a $25,000 Matching
Challenge of his own until the end of this month. ... Your donations to
speed research into repairing the damage of aging and extending the healthy
human lifespan will be matched 2-to-1 until the end of 2007, expanding your
donation threefold. ... The two presently open Donation Challenges match
donations to SENS Research cumulatively. That is, newer matching pledges
are evaluated first and the amount matched is added to the incoming
donation before the amount for the next matching pledge is calculated,
magnifying the value of the donation substantially. At present, a $100
donation (enough for a free autographed copy of 'Ending Aging') is
leveraged to $300!" If you've been thinking about stepping up to help make
a real difference to the field of aging research, now is the time. If not
now, when?
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newsletter@longevitymeme.org.
