The Methuselah Gene
September 28, 2010
The strong correlation between size and the aging process has been discussed here before. However the connection between the two is a very complex puzzle of different ingredients, all playing a role in the aging/growing process. A type of gene mutation long known to extend the lives of worms, flies and mice also turns up in long-lived humans. In people this rare genetic mutation, known as the Methuselah Gene, decreases their cell’s use of a particular growth hormone: insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF1). The mutants are smaller, age slower, and live longer and healthier lives. What desire is stronger? The desire to live long or the desire to have long bodies?
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