Scientists Extend the Lives of Mice

A group of Boston-based scientists claim to have taken a giant step in understanding the science of longevity.

Ronald DePinho, a Molecular biologist Dr. at Harvard Medical School in Boston says his team has managed to reverse the aging process in lab mice. By playing with “telomeres” — the protective DNA caps on the ends of chromosomes that protect cells from eroding – DePinho claims the treated rodents showed “a dramatic reversal” in aging. “The shrunken brains increased, new neurons were formed, the coat hair was restored to a new sheen,” he says. “This teaches us something fundamental about aging: that aged tissue — even very aged tissue — retains the ability to rejuvenate itself.”