At Betterhumans, an article on recent noteworthy research into the biochemistry of calorie restriction. As we should all know by now, calorie restriction has long been shown to extend healthy lifespan and drastically increase resistance to the common diseases of aging. It looks like MIT scientists have definitively pinned down one simple mechanism whereby calorie restriction activates a known anti-aging gene - it remains to be seen whether this is the only or principle mode by which calorie restriction operates to extend healthy life span.

Link: http://www.betterhumans.com/News/news.aspx?articleID=2003-12-31-4

The BBC notes that Professor Martin Evans, the chief architect of modern stem cell research, has received a knighthood in honor of his work. It is very gratifying to see this research - now a field promising cures for Parkinson's, Alzheimer's, nerve damage, heart disease, cancer, diabetes and many more conditions - lauded rather than attacked by a governmental institution. The UK is currently one of the more hospitable locations for stem cell research, and government officials take a much more pro-research and pro-medicine line than their counterparts in the US, Germany or other European nations.

Link: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/3357677.stm

The New York Daily News takes a look ahead at the pace of medical science in just a few of many fields. Researchers are making amazing progress in the fight against the most common diseases and conditions of aging: heart disease, Alzheimer's and diabetes are amongst those mentioned in this article. Improved therapies are expected in the next couple of years, followed by impressive leaps in medical science over the next decade. One rather important omitted detail is the dependency of many of these new medical technologies on political battles currently underway. If stem cell medicine is banned in the US - as it may be if we don't speak out - then many of the promised cures will be long delayed.

Link: http://www.nydailynews.com/front/story/149777p-132061c.html

As reported in Wired, it turns out that research into regenerating hair is more important to tissue engineering (a branch of regenerative medicine) than you might initially think. In a way, hair regeneration has suffered from the same problem as legitimate anti-aging research - it's a small discipline amid a sea of fraudsters, quacks and fake medicine. Real science is starting to triumph, however, and this holds out hope for the future of healthy life extension and anti-aging medicine. The article is an interesting read, so go and take a look.

Link: http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/12.01/baldness.html?tw=wn_tophead_3

Simon Smith of Betterhumans looks back at the year in technology in his latest column. Medicine and healthy life extension developments are near the top of his list - including the entry of the first real anti-aging drugs into the pipeline, and amazing developments in stem cell and genetic medicine. He should have mentioned ongoing work that keeps making computers faster and cheaper, since that trend drives the latest medical research, ever faster and ever better. Now if only the politicians would just stand back and let it all happen...

Link: http://www.betterhumans.com/Features/Columns/Forward_Thinking/column.aspx?articleID=2003-12-29-1

It's been a slow news weekend for topics of interest to healthy life extensionists, so take a little time to read the Longevity Meme newsletter today instead. It's a look back at what we think are the most important trends and happenings in 2003: stem cell research, bad legislation, therapeutic cloning, calorie restriction and cryonics are all in there somewhere. Our newsletter is a year old next issue, so what better time to sign up or add the RSS feed to your news aggregator? Come on in; you're all welcome.

Link: http://www.longevitymeme.org/newsletter/view_newsletter.cfm?newsletter_id=47

LONGEVITY MEME NEWSLETTER
December 29 2003

The Longevity Meme Newsletter is a biweekly 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.

______________________________

CONTENTS

- Looking Back on 2003
- The Methuselah Mouse Prize: A Great Step Forward
- A Year in Stem Cell Medicine: Advances and Setbacks
- Cryonics in 2003: Publicity, Not All Welcome
- Calorie Restriction, a Year of Eating Well
- Discussion
- Latest Healthy Life Extension News Headlines

LOOKING BACK ON 2003

It's been a year of ups and downs in progress towards working healthy life extension medicine. Researchers have produced weekly miracles of science, while politicians and special interests have labored mightily to ban it all. This newsletter itself is now almost a year old, so you'll find many of the salient high and low points of 2003 covered in past issues. Follow the link below and scroll down to read them.

http://www.longevitymeme.org/newsletter/

THE METHUSELAH MOUSE PRIZE: A GREAT STEP FORWARD

Supported by some of the same faces behind the enormously successful X Prize, the Methuselah Mouse Prize for Anti-Aging Research became a reality in 2003. In its first six months, the prize has passed $40,000 in public donations, and has received endorsements from leading researchers and futurists.

http://www.methuselahmouse.org/

I look forward to seeing great things in the future of this effort. You can help too by making a modest tax-deductible donation. Go ahead!

A YEAR IN STEM CELL MEDICINE: ADVANCES AND SETBACKS

Advances in stem cell medicine have been simply stunning in 2003, as have, alas, political efforts to block this medical progress. We've seen the first successful applications of simple stem cell medicine to cure heart disease in human trials in the US, Germany and Japan ... closely followed by a block on further trials in the US:

http://www.longevitymeme.org/projects/protest_fda_interference.cfm

Breakthroughs have been made in therapeutic cloning, a fundamental technology needed to bring regenerative medicine based on stem cells out of the laboratory and into hospitals. Regenerative medicine has an unassuming name, but shows amazing promise in trials and research work: cures for Parkinson's, nerve damage, heart disease, Alzheimer's, cancer, blindness, deafness, diabetes, and serious physical injuries have all been demonstrated in trials or research settings using regenerative medicine based on stem cell technology. This wave of medical technology will - if not blocked - bring better medicine and longer, healthier lives.

http://www.longevitymeme.org/topics/stem_cells_and_regenerative_medicine.cfm

Scientists are learning ever more about the biochemical mechanisms that control stem cells. At the time of writing, Advanced Cell Technology has demonstrated reliable embryonic stem cell production, while a research group from Scripps claims to be able to create stem cells from adult tissue:

http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/12.01/clones.html?tw=wn_tophead_3

http://www.betterhumans.com/News/news.aspx?articleID=2003-12-24-5

With better sources of cells and newly available tools and knowledge, researchers could soon begin making even faster progress towards cures for diseases that have plagued humanity and shortened lives since the dawn of mankind. Truly, we live in an era of wonders.

Unfortunately, all these breakthroughs have occurred under a cloud of hostile, anti-research legislation in the US and Europe. The US senate is due to vote on a complete ban on therapeutic cloning in 2004, while the US will again be leading attempts to enact a UN global ban on this vital medical technology late in the year. A ban on therapeutic cloning is effectively a ban on all regenerative medicine based on stem cells: this means a ban on demonstrated cures Parkinson's, nerve damage, heart disease, Alzheimer's, cancer, blindness, deafness, diabetes, and serious physical injuries. It is nothing short of astounding that so many allegedly compassionate human beings are spending so much time, money and effort to ensure that the sick and elderly continue to suffer and die. You can learn more - and make your voice heard - at the following pages:

http://www.longevitymeme.org/projects/oppose_the_therapeutic_cloning_ban.cfm
http://www.longevitymeme.org/projects/oppose_global_therapeutic_cloning_ban.cfm

CRYONICS IN 2003: PUBLICITY, NOT ALL WELCOME

2003 has been an interesting, mixed year for the small and often misunderstood cryonics industry. Cryonics providers are companies that will freeze your body on death ("cryopreservation"), in the hopes that future medical technology will be able to revive and repair you. Cryonics offers the only hope of eventual healthy life extension for people who are too old or too ill to benefit from the medicine of the next few decades. You can lean more at:

http://www.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cryonics
http://www.cryonet.org/

The entry of a new research venture, Suspended Animation Inc., promises to bring much needed advances and spin-offs to basic cryonics technology as currently practiced. Better technology and product lines other than cryopreservation are badly needed, in my opinion at least, and can only help to legitimize the cryonics industry in the eyes of its detractors.

http://www.suspendedanimationinc.com/

The cryopreservation of baseball legend Ted Williams at Alcor led to some very high profile publicity earlier in the year (and an equally high profile and rather ugly legal battle between his children over his choice to be preserved). Sadly, the only lasting effect of this publicity appears to be a newfound interest by government officials in regulating or shutting down cryonics providers, all for far from noble reasons. The Cryonics Institute has been targeted, for example, despite legally and safely conducting its business for the past three decades. The following link from Rand Simberg's blog makes all the necessary points on this issue:

http://www.interglobal.org/weblog/archives/003115.html

Additionally, Suspended Animation was recently denied permission to conduct legal scientific research in their new Boca Raton facility, and is suffering through the search for a new location. The cryonics industry seemed for a while, as it has before, on the verge of some form of breakthrough in public perception and legitimacy ... but it may be just back to business as usual in 2004. Keep an eye on Suspended Animation, Inc, though: if real long-term change is coming, that company or one like it is likely to be the source.

CALORIE RESTRICTION, A YEAR OF EATING WELL

Calorie restriction groups, such as the CR Society, appear to have won the media diet wars of 2003, be it unintentionally and without really trying. Calorie restriction, eating fewer calories while still obtaining the necessary nutrients and vitamins, has long been known to extend healthy life span. Indeed, calorie restriction is the gold standard of healthy life extension research - the one technique currently available that we can say works beyond a doubt:

http://www.longevitymeme.org/topics/calorie_restriction.cfm

Calorie restriction (CR) has been showing up in mainstream media ever more often during 2003, no doubt due to a surprisingly large number of serious articles on the merits of various diets and the growing problem of obesity in modern society. CR isn't practiced for weight loss, of course, but that is one of the side effects. The final consensus in the mainstream press appeared to be that low calorie diets - like CR - beat out all others in benefits and effectiveness. This process culminated in a recent series of spots on CR at ABCNews:

http://abcnews.go.com/sections/2020/Living/calorie_restriction_diet_031205-1.html

The CR Society itself has been growing in size and sophistication, and the hope is that we'll see more of that in 2004. If you want to learn more about practicing CR to lengthen your life and improve your health, then the CR Society website is very much the place to start. Follow the link below:

http://www.calorierestriction.org

As a final note, the National Institute of Aging is funding CALERIE, a serious, large-scale study on the long-term beneficial effects of CR that got underway in 2003.

http://calerie.dcri.duke.edu/

In conjunction with work in the private sector performed by companies such as BioMarker Pharmaceuticals, this may lead to greater understanding and eventual advances in healthy life extension medicine.

DISCUSSION

That would be all for this issue of the newsletter. The highlights and headlines from the past two weeks follow below.

Remember - if you like this newsletter, the chances are that your friends will find it useful too. Forward the newsletter on by all means, or post it 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

Founder, Longevity Meme

______________________________

RECENT NEWS

Japan Moves Ahead With Embryonic Stem Cell Research (December 26 2003)
http://www.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/getarticle.pl5?nn20031227b4.htm
The Japan Times reports on Japanese efforts to be at the forefront of embryonic stem cell research, with an emphasis on developing cures for neurodegenerative diseases like Parkinson's. The final comments on bioethics regarding embryonic stem cells are telling: an island of Japanese rationality in the midst of a sea of Western hysteria. This research will lead to cures for some of the worst conditions of aging - it will lead to longer, healthier lives. We should support the hard working scientists who are striving to improve our lives and bring better medicine to the world.

New Understanding of Brain Damage Mechanism (December 26 2003)
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2003-12/uot-nuo121903.php
(At EurekAlert). This article has been doing the rounds for a few days; scientists have uncovered the major mechanism that causes brain damage when cells are deprived of oxygen (such as from a stroke), and have a way to prevent it for up to three hours. Strokes are the second leading cause of death worldwide, and a new anti-stroke therapy could be available in three years or so. This new knowledge is also very interesting in regard to cryonics: it would be a way of ensuring that the brain is not damaged in the interval between death and cryopreservation.

More on Reversine at Scripps (December 25 2003)
http://www.betterhumans.com/News/news.aspx?articleID=2003-12-24-5
Betterhumans covers the recently announced work at the Scripps Research Institute on creating stem cells via a chemical called reversine. As the Betterhumans staff notes, this potentially opens the door to lizard-like regeneration of lost body parts in humans, not to mention bypassing the embryonic stem stell debate. Some scientists and observers in the field are (justifiably) skeptical, however, and want to see wider scientific confirmation and independent verification of this new process.

The State of Tissue Engineering (December 25 2003)
http://www.genomenewsnetwork.org/articles/12_03/tissue_engineering.shtml
The Genome News Network provides an informative article on the current state of the art in tissue engineering for regenerative medicine. There is some impressive work being done at the forefront of the field: "This is not imaginary science anymore," says William Haseltine, CEO of Human Genome Sciences. "Functional tissues made from cells and biomaterials are being implanted in humans." Teams of scientists have grown and successfully implanted entire organs in the lab, using biodegradable scaffolds and the patient's own cells. This is impressive medical technology: waiting for transplants may soon be a thing of the past.

The Role of Animals in Regenerative Medicine (December 24 2003)
http://www.reason.com/rb/rb122403.shtml
Ronald Bailey's latest article at Reason Online outlines the prominant role that animal studies have in the march towards working regenerative medicine. He also examines the strong opposition towards work on growing replacement human tissue and stem cells in animal hosts, finding it illogical and inconsistant: "What is more immoral - working to provide transplants for sick people, or blocking the development of such transplants?" This oppposition to medical progress is a part of a wider anti-research movement at work in the US today.

Nanotechnology, Medicine and Healthy Life Extension (December 23 2003)
http://www.biomedcentral.com/news/20031223/02/
BioMed Central notes that nanotechnology will revolutionize medicine, starting fairly soon with improvements to diagnosis and personalised medicine. Nanotechnology is itself an enormous, rapidly growing field, and I encourage you to read up on the possibilities for astounding advances in health and longevity through nanomedicine. A good starting point is "Nanotechnology and Life Extension" here at the Longevity Meme, penned by Chris Phoenix of the Center for Responsible Nanotechnology. Nanotechnology offers the eventual hope of truly low cost medicine for everyone, and will probably one day replace stem cell based regenerative medicine as the healthy life extension technology of choice.

Stem Cells Giving Up Their Secrets (December 23 2003)
http://www.nature.com/nsu/031222/031222-4.html
At Nature, news of another advance in our ability to control and use stem cells. Based on knowledge gained earlier in 2003, scientists have used chemicals to control the timing of stem cell specialization. This is the beginning of the road to discard some of the very clumsy techniques currently used to this end. A quote: "If we want to make stem cells into therapies, we're going to need cell lines that were never grown in any foreign proteins. This work should help us take stem cells into that clinical setting."

Normal Cells Turned Into Stem Cells (December 22 2003)
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2003-12/sri-rct122203.php
(From EurekAlert). Scientists from the Scripps Research Institute are claiming success in making adult cells reverse the normal cycle of development in order to form their own precursor stem cells. If widely validated by the scientific community, this should be hailed as an amazing success in the march towards regenerative medicine and longer, healthier lives. Stem cell therapies for the degenerative conditions of aging will be far more effective if your own stem cells can be used to regenerate lost or damaged tissue. We should all keep an eye on this research to see what develops.

Is Aging Just Undetermined Disease? (December 22 2003)
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2003-12/bc-dwy122203.php
A release at EurekAlert proposes that the symptoms of old age are the effects of undiagnosed and possibly unrecognized diseases. As the article points out, osteoporosis (bone loss) was not recognized as a treatable condition - as opposed to "just a part of getting old" - until comparatively recently in medical history. This is an intriguing and important way of looking at things, especially since regulatory agencies like the FDA do not recognize aging as a disease or condition, and will therefore not approve treatments. A quote: "The distinction between normal ageing and disease late in life seems to a large extent arbitrary."

Christopher Reeve on Medical Research (December 21 2003)
http://www.jta.org/page_view_story.asp?intarticleid=13591&intcategoryid=5
In this article from JTA News, Christopher Reeve discusses his recent visit to Israel and the current state of research into regenerative medicine. Reeve is a very effective advocate for the research most likely to lead to healthy life extension medicine - as well as to a cure for the nerve damage causing his paralysis - and his CRPF does good work. A quote: "What I’m fighting for is the freedom of scientific inquiry. Stem cells will probably benefit millions of people suffering from a wide variety of diseases." You should let Christopher Reeve know that he's doing a great, amazing job.

Show Your Support For CAMR (December 20 2003)
http://www.longevitymeme.org/projects/support_the_coalition_for_the_advancement_of_medicine.cfm
The Coalition for the Advancement of Medicine (CAMR) is a noted, active political advocacy group that is fighting for the right to develop better therapeutic cloning technologies (also known as "somatic cell nuclear transfer" or SCNT). A great deal of stem cell and regenerative medicine rests on the use of therapeutic cloning, so currently threatened bans and existing restrictive legislation are damaging a broad swathe of research. CAMR is working on your behalf to make sure that the most promising present day medical research is allowed, and that the life saving medicine of the future is permitted. You can help by taking part in their initiatives.

Just Add Water (December 19 2003)
http://www.nature.com/nsu/031215/031215-11.html
Nature is carrying an article on a very interesting direction in stem cell research: dehydrated storage. "Instant" stem cells could one day be used as an advanced form of first aid; just add water for regenerative medicine on the go. That is a long way off, of course, but any technique that eases storage and transport of stem cells will be a great boon to research across the board. This work is an outgrowth of proven dehydration techniques used to dry and store blood cells for transfusion. It is a good sign to see healthy progress in baseline utility technologies for stem cell medicine: better tools mean faster, cheaper, better research.

Methuselah Mouse Prize Hits $40,000 (December 18 2003)
http://www.methuselahmouse.org
The Methuselah Mouse Prize, launched earlier in 2003, has passed the $40,000 mark. A cause for celebration indeed! This is thanks to the many people who have come forward to be early donors, leading the way for well known donors like William Haseltine and Ray Kurzweil to make contributions and endorsements. We see a great future ahead for the Methuselah Mouse Prize; it is growing faster than the X Prize did in its early days back in 1996. You can help the future of the Methuselah Mouse Prize and of anti-aging research: donate today!

Potential Cancer Cure Number 19 (December 18 2003)
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2003-12/slu-tcc121503.php
EurekAlert covers another potential cancer cure in the works. There has been a recent trend, enabled by advances in basic medical technologies, towards smarter ways of fighting cancer: targeting only cancerous cells for destruction, for example. In this case, a genetically engineering cold virus attacks only cancerous cells. The latest cancer research is essential to healthy life extension, and the variety of potential cures is a demonstration of what solid funding and public backing can do. We need to do the same for anti-aging research!

Regenerative Medicine Grows Blood Vessels (December 17 2003)
http://www.betterhumans.com/News/news.aspx?articleID=2003-12-16-2
(From Betterhumans). In an important step forward, researchers have grown embryonic stem cells into fully formed blood vessels. The need to create blood vessels has been a stumbling block on the way to culturing large amounts of replacement tissue (such as organs for transplant), and now it looks like this problem is well on the way to being solved. The ability to grow new blood vessels as required opens the door to a range of advanced regenerative medicine, such as transplants for age-damaged organs that are grown from a patient's own cells.

European Parliament Rejects Therapeutic Cloning Ban (December 17 2003)
http://www.biomedcentral.com/news/20031217/03/
As noted by BioMed Central, the European Parliament has rejected attempts to adopt a blanket ban on the medical use of cells created via therapeutic cloning. The adopted legislation (largely dealing with safety and quality issues in human tissues for medical use) defers to member states on stem cells and therapeutic cloning. "Regarding cloned human embryos, it was agreed that existing legislation in the member states should remain into force. This directive does not interfere with these states' decisions concerning the use or non-use of any specific type of human cells, including germ cells and embryonic stem cells."

On Abuses of Skepticism and Healthy Life Extension (December 16 2003)
http://www.csicop.org/doubtandabout/abuses/
An article by Chris Mooney at CSICOP reveals the way in which normally healthy skepticism is abused to cast doubt on valid scientific advances towards longer, healthier lives. A quote: "There are lots of cranks out there pushing unproven anti-aging remedies today. And as Shermer rightly notes, leading gerontologists have issued statements condemning such quackery. But many of those same scientists think we will be able to slow or even reverse human aging in the relatively near future." Healthy life extension cannot be dismissed or left unfunded simply because there is fraud in the "anti-aging" marketplace.

Inside a Successful Therapeutic Cloning Advance (December 16 2003)
http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/12.01/clones.html?tw=wn_tophead_3
Wired is running a fascinating report on a successful advance in therapeutic cloning technology at Advanced Cell Technology (ACT). ACT uses therapeutic cloning to create sources of stem cells, essential to regenerative medicine research. Like many companies, ACT has been hit hard by the hostile political atmosphere in the US; the article should make it quite clear that current administration policies are badly damaging vital research. There could be worse to come, so make your voice heard!

The Science Behind Ceremedix and Lifeline (December 15 2003)
http://newsite.lef.org/news/aging/2003/12/08/krtbn/0000-0390-DP-BRAIN-RESEARCH.html
The LEF News has a little more on the science behind the promised new antioxidant supplement from Ceremedix and Lifeline Nutraceuticals. I normally wouldn't spend so much space on supplements - since other medical technologies show so much more promise, and their marketplaces are not filled with frauds and wastrels - but people have been asking, and this sort of material isn't easy to dig up from the primary scientific sources. For those who are interested, you should be able to follow up further from the facts presented in this article.

NJ Assembly Approves Stem Cell Research (December 15 2003)
http://www.newsday.com/news/local/wire/ny-bc-nj--xgr-stemcells1215dec15,0,5932918.story?coll=ny-ap-regional-wire
(Reported in Newsday.com). Despite opposition from conservatives, New Jersey approved a bill permitting stem cell research in the state. It is very good to see at least a few states standing up to the anti-research legislation in the Federal government. A quote: "Organizations that sponsor research for terminal illnesses praised the bill as a major step forward for finding cures and lessening painful symptoms of deadly diseases." Stem cell research offers near term hope for extending healthy lifespan and saving many lives through regenerative medicine; the ability to repair the damage caused by aging and injury.

______________________________

Do you have comments for us, or want to discuss the newsletter?

The Japan Times reports on Japanese efforts to be at the forefront of embryonic stem cell research, with an emphasis on developing cures for neurodegenerative diseases like Parkinson's. The final comments on bioethics regarding embryonic stem cells are telling: an island of Japanese rationality in the midst of a sea of Western hysteria. This research will lead to cures for some of the worst conditions of aging - it will lead to longer, healthier lives. We should support the hard working scientists who are striving to improve our lives and bring better medicine to the world.

Link: http://www.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/getarticle.pl5?nn20031227b4.htm

(At EurekAlert). This article has been doing the rounds for a few days; scientists have uncovered the major mechanism that causes brain damage when cells are deprived of oxygen (such as from a stroke), and have a way to prevent it for up to three hours. Strokes are the second leading cause of death worldwide, and a new anti-stroke therapy could be available in three years or so. This new knowledge is also very interesting in regard to cryonics: it would be a way of ensuring that the brain is not damaged in the interval between death and cryopreservation.

Link: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2003-12/uot-nuo121903.php

Betterhumans covers the recently announced work at the Scripps Research Institute on creating stem cells via a chemical called reversine. As the Betterhumans staff notes, this potentially opens the door to lizard-like regeneration of lost body parts in humans, not to mention bypassing the embryonic stem stell debate. Some scientists and observers in the field are (justifiably) skeptical, however, and want to see wider scientific confirmation and independent verification of this new process.

Link: http://www.betterhumans.com/News/news.aspx?articleID=2003-12-24-5

The Genome News Network provides an informative article on the current state of the art in tissue engineering for regenerative medicine. There is some impressive work being done at the forefront of the field: "This is not imaginary science anymore," says William Haseltine, CEO of Human Genome Sciences. "Functional tissues made from cells and biomaterials are being implanted in humans." Teams of scientists have grown and successfully implanted entire organs in the lab, using biodegradable scaffolds and the patient's own cells. This is impressive medical technology: waiting for transplants may soon be a thing of the past.

Link: http://www.genomenewsnetwork.org/articles/12_03/tissue_engineering.shtml

Ronald Bailey's latest article at Reason Online outlines the prominant role that animal studies have in the march towards working regenerative medicine. He also examines the strong opposition towards work on growing replacement human tissue and stem cells in animal hosts, finding it illogical and inconsistant: "What is more immoral - working to provide transplants for sick people, or blocking the development of such transplants?" This oppposition to medical progress is a part of a wider anti-research movement at work in the US today.

Link: http://www.reason.com/rb/rb122403.shtml

BioMed Central notes that nanotechnology will revolutionize medicine, starting fairly soon with improvements to diagnosis and personalised medicine. Nanotechnology is itself an enormous, rapidly growing field, and I encourage you to read up on the possibilities for astounding advances in health and longevity through nanomedicine. A good starting point is "Nanotechnology and Life Extension" here at the Longevity Meme, penned by Chris Phoenix of the Center for Responsible Nanotechnology. Nanotechnology offers the eventual hope of truly low cost medicine for everyone, and will probably one day replace stem cell based regenerative medicine as the healthy life extension technology of choice.

Link: http://www.biomedcentral.com/news/20031223/02/

At Nature, news of another advance in our ability to control and use stem cells. Based on knowledge gained earlier in 2003, scientists have used chemicals to control the timing of stem cell specialization. This is the beginning of the road to discard some of the very clumsy techniques currently used to this end. A quote: "If we want to make stem cells into therapies, we're going to need cell lines that were never grown in any foreign proteins. This work should help us take stem cells into that clinical setting."

Link: http://www.nature.com/nsu/031222/031222-4.html

(From EurekAlert). Scientists from the Scripps Research Institute are claiming success in making adult cells reverse the normal cycle of development in order to form their own precursor stem cells. If widely validated by the scientific community, this should be hailed as an amazing success in the march towards regenerative medicine and longer, healthier lives. Stem cell therapies for the degenerative conditions of aging will be far more effective if your own stem cells can be used to regenerate lost or damaged tissue. We should all keep an eye on this research to see what develops.

Link: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2003-12/sri-rct122203.php

A release at EurekAlert proposes that the symptoms of old age are the effects of undiagnosed and possibly unrecognized diseases. As the article points out, osteoporosis (bone loss) was not recognized as a treatable condition - as opposed to "just a part of getting old" - until comparatively recently in medical history. This is an intriguing and important way of looking at things, especially since regulatory agencies like the FDA do not recognize aging as a disease or condition, and will therefore not approve treatments. A quote: "The distinction between normal ageing and disease late in life seems to a large extent arbitrary."

Link: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2003-12/bc-dwy122203.php

In this article from JTA News, Christopher Reeve discusses his recent visit to Israel and the current state of research into regenerative medicine. Reeve is a very effective advocate for the research most likely to lead to healthy life extension medicine - as well as to a cure for the nerve damage causing his paralysis - and his CRPF does good work. A quote: "What I’m fighting for is the freedom of scientific inquiry. Stem cells will probably benefit millions of people suffering from a wide variety of diseases." You should let Christopher Reeve know that he's doing a great, amazing job.

Link: http://www.jta.org/page_view_story.asp?intarticleid=13591&intcategoryid=5

The Coalition for the Advancement of Medicine (CAMR) is a noted, active political advocacy group that is fighting for the right to develop better therapeutic cloning technologies (also known as "somatic cell nuclear transfer" or SCNT). A great deal of stem cell and regenerative medicine rests on the use of therapeutic cloning, so currently threatened bans and existing restrictive legislation are damaging a broad swathe of research. CAMR is working on your behalf to make sure that the most promising present day medical research is allowed, and that the life saving medicine of the future is permitted. You can help by taking part in their initiatives.

Link: http://www.longevitymeme.org/projects/support_the_coalition_for_the_advancement_of_medicine.cfm

Nature is carrying an article on a very interesting direction in stem cell research: dehydrated storage. "Instant" stem cells could one day be used as an advanced form of first aid; just add water for regenerative medicine on the go. That is a long way off, of course, but any technique that eases storage and transport of stem cells will be a great boon to research across the board. This work is an outgrowth of proven dehydration techniques used to dry and store blood cells for transfusion. It is a good sign to see healthy progress in baseline utility technologies for stem cell medicine: better tools mean faster, cheaper, better research.

Link: http://www.nature.com/nsu/031215/031215-11.html

The Methuselah Mouse Prize, launched earlier in 2003, has passed the $40,000 mark. A cause for celebration indeed! This is thanks to the many people who have come forward to be early donors, leading the way for well known donors like William Haseltine and Ray Kurzweil to make contributions and endorsements. We see a great future ahead for the Methuselah Mouse Prize; it is growing faster than the X Prize did in its early days back in 1996. You can help the future of the Methuselah Mouse Prize and of anti-aging research: donate today!

Link: http://www.methuselahmouse.org

EurekAlert covers another potential cancer cure in the works. There has been a recent trend, enabled by advances in basic medical technologies, towards smarter ways of fighting cancer: targeting only cancerous cells for destruction, for example. In this case, a genetically engineering cold virus attacks only cancerous cells. The latest cancer research is essential to healthy life extension, and the variety of potential cures is a demonstration of what solid funding and public backing can do. We need to do the same for anti-aging research!

Link: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2003-12/slu-tcc121503.php

(From Betterhumans). In an important step forward, researchers have grown embryonic stem cells into fully formed blood vessels. The need to create blood vessels has been a stumbling block on the way to culturing large amounts of replacement tissue (such as organs for transplant), and now it looks like this problem is well on the way to being solved. The ability to grow new blood vessels as required opens the door to a range of advanced regenerative medicine, such as transplants for age-damaged organs that are grown from a patient's own cells.

Link: http://www.betterhumans.com/News/news.aspx?articleID=2003-12-16-2

As noted by BioMed Central, the European Parliament has rejected attempts to adopt a blanket ban on the medical use of cells created via therapeutic cloning. The adopted legislation (largely dealing with safety and quality issues in human tissues for medical use) defers to member states on stem cells and therapeutic cloning. "Regarding cloned human embryos, it was agreed that existing legislation in the member states should remain into force. This directive does not interfere with these states' decisions concerning the use or non-use of any specific type of human cells, including germ cells and embryonic stem cells."

Link: http://www.biomedcentral.com/news/20031217/03/

An article by Chris Mooney at CSICOP reveals the way in which normally healthy skepticism is abused to cast doubt on valid scientific advances towards longer, healthier lives. A quote: "There are lots of cranks out there pushing unproven anti-aging remedies today. And as Shermer rightly notes, leading gerontologists have issued statements condemning such quackery. But many of those same scientists think we will be able to slow or even reverse human aging in the relatively near future." Healthy life extension cannot be dismissed or left unfunded simply because there is fraud in the "anti-aging" marketplace.

Link: http://www.csicop.org/doubtandabout/abuses/

Wired is running a fascinating report on a successful advance in therapeutic cloning technology at Advanced Cell Technology (ACT). ACT uses therapeutic cloning to create sources of stem cells, essential to regenerative medicine research. Like many companies, ACT has been hit hard by the hostile political atmosphere in the US; the article should make it quite clear that current administration policies are badly damaging vital research. There could be worse to come, so make your voice heard!

Link: http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/12.01/clones.html?tw=wn_tophead_3

The LEF News has a little more on the science behind the promised new antioxidant supplement from Ceremedix and Lifeline Nutraceuticals. I normally wouldn't spend so much space on supplements - since other medical technologies show so much more promise, and their marketplaces are not filled with frauds and wastrels - but people have been asking, and this sort of material isn't easy to dig up from the primary scientific sources. For those who are interested, you should be able to follow up further from the facts presented in this article.

Link: http://newsite.lef.org/news/aging/2003/12/08/krtbn/0000-0390-DP-BRAIN-RESEARCH.html

(Reported in Newsday.com). Despite opposition from conservatives, New Jersey approved a bill permitting stem cell research in the state. It is very good to see at least a few states standing up to the anti-research legislation in the Federal government. A quote: "Organizations that sponsor research for terminal illnesses praised the bill as a major step forward for finding cures and lessening painful symptoms of deadly diseases." Stem cell research offers near term hope for extending healthy lifespan and saving many lives through regenerative medicine; the ability to repair the damage caused by aging and injury.

Link: http://www.newsday.com/news/local/wire/ny-bc-nj--xgr-stemcells1215dec15,0,5932918.story?coll=ny-ap-regional-wire

LONGEVITY MEME NEWSLETTER
December 15 2003

The Longevity Meme Newsletter is a biweekly 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.

______________________________

CONTENTS

- Ray Kurzweil Endorses Anti-Aging Research Prize
- Kurzweil on Radical Life Extension
- How the Politics of Medical Research Affect You
- Support CAMR and Fight For Better Medical Research
- Discussion
- Latest Healthy Life Extension News Headlines

RAY KURZWEIL ENDORSES ANTI-AGING RESEARCH PRIZE

Ray Kurzweil, the influential inventor, entrepreneur and futurist, has long had a strong interest in healthy life extension and the associated development of new, advanced medical technology. I am very pleased to see that he has endorsed the recently launched Methuselah Mouse Prize for anti-aging research. Ray Kurzweil is a respected voice in many fields, and his endorsement and the accompanying modest donation will do a great deal of good. You can read more below:

http://www.methuselahmouse.org/news/Kurzweil.htm

Given the high-powered endorsements of the Methuselah Mouse Prize of late, isn't it time that you donated? The current matching fund will add one dollar for every two dollars donated until the first $50,000 total is reached. Follow the link below to make your tax-deductible donation:

http://www.methuselahmouse.org/donate.php

Consider it a small down payment on better medicine and a longer, healthier future!

KURZWEIL ON RADICAL LIFE EXTENSION

You might be familiar with the KurzweilAI website, and this is a very good place to learn more about Ray Kurzweil's fields of interest. The KurzweilAI website sports an interest selection of articles and discussions on radical life extension and the medical technologies that will be needed to make it all work. I recommend you devote some leisure time to browse and take it in:

http://www.kurzweilai.net/meme/frame.html?m=5

From this and other resources, it should be clear that the medical, scientific path to extending our healthy life spans is well marked and well understood by at least some scientists. As usual, politics and human nature are what provide the uncertainty in our future.

HOW THE POLITICS OF MEDICAL RESEARCH AFFECT YOU

I would love to be able to spend more time talking about science and longer, healthier lives and less time talking about the politics of medical research. Unfortunately, it really does seem that the length and quality of our lives depend ever more on the outcome of political battles currently in progress.

Stem cell medicine and therapeutic cloning are the technologies most likely to produce real anti-aging medicine in the near term. They are the medical technologies most likely to produce cures for the degenerative diseases of aging in the near term, including cancer, Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, nerve damage, diabetes, inflammation and heart disease. These are also the technologies under greatest attack. The research is very promising, but anti-research factions are trying very hard to enact bans. You can read more about these technologies and their relevance to healthy life extension at the following pages:

http://www.longevitymeme.org/topics/stem_cells_and_regenerative_medicine.cfm

http://www.infoaging.org/b-cloning-3-therapeutic.html

Every year in which anti-research groups and politicians succeed in holding back healthy life extension research is another year in which you, I and everyone else will have to suffer the effects of aging and degenerative diseases.

Attacks on stem cell research and therapeutic cloning have led to a short stalemate in the US. Stem cell research and funding is damaged by existing Federal legislation, but an outright ban on therapeutic cloning (passed by the House in 2003) is halted, awaiting Senate debate:

http://www.longevitymeme.org/projects/oppose_the_therapeutic_cloning_ban.cfm

Christopher Reeve and eminent scientists estimate that US legislation has set the field of regenerative medicine back by five years. That's five more years of suffering, aging, disease and death that could have been cured or prevented.

On the international stage, the US administration and its allies have been pushing hard for a UN global ban on therapeutic cloning research over the past few months. They came within two votes of getting it in November, but the motion was postponed for two years until late 2005. The US aggressively tried to overturn this stay in early December, succeeding in bringing the delay down to only one year before the matter is voted on again. Read more at the following page:

http://www.longevitymeme.org/projects/oppose_global_therapeutic_cloning_ban.cfm

I'm sure that I don't have to tell you all just how damaging a UN ban on this vital research would be. Anti-research forces within many countries have already succeeding in choking progress and stifling research into using stem cells and therapeutic cloning to cure disease and extend healthy life span. Your voice in these debates counts: you can make a difference by contacting your elected representatives to make your views known. Ask them tough questions: why are they trying so hard to prevent cures from being developed for the diseases of aging? Why are they endorsing the continuing, terrible human suffering that results from these diseases and degenerative conditions? Tell them that you vote, and that you vote for medical progress.

http://www.longevitymeme.org/projects/

SUPPORT CAMR AND FIGHT FOR BETTER MEDICAL RESEARCH

The Coalition for the Advancement of Medical Research (CAMR) has been doing a great job in taking on the anti-research forces in US politics. Their website is a wonderful resource for anyone who wants to speak out in favor of stem cell and therapeutic cloning research. You can learn more about the topics and the underlying science, read precise summaries of the positions, and make your voice heard by contacting elected representatives:

http://www.camradvocacy.org

In addition to opposing the potential US ban on therapeutic cloning (and hence on a great deal of stem cell research), CAMR intends to make these issues central to the 2004 election. You can help them do so: visit their website to see how.

DISCUSSION

That would be all for this issue of the newsletter. The highlights and headlines from the past two weeks follow below.

Remember - if you like this newsletter, the chances are that your friends will find it useful too. Forward the newsletter on by all means, or post it 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

Founder, Longevity Meme

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RECENT NEWS

Ray Kurzweil Endorses Methuselah Mouse Prize (December 14 2003)
http://www.methuselahmouse.org/news/Kurzweil.htm
Ray Kurzweil, influential inventor and futurist, has given his stamp of approval (and a modest donation) to the Methuselah Mouse Prize. This effort is an ambitious, well-received attempt to revive scientific anti-aging research. By encouraging scientists, educating the public and stimulating funding, we can help to make near term anti-aging therapies a reality. The prize was also recently endorsed by William Haseltine, CEO of Human Genome Sciences and Bob Gelfond, MagicQ founder. Donations are currently being matched 1:2 by a challenge grant, so now is a great time to make a tax-deductible donation. Let's help get the prize to the first $50,000 milestone!

Important Stem Cell Breakthough (December 14 2003)
http://www.betterhumans.com/News/news.aspx?articleID=2003-12-11-4
This research (reported on here by Betterhumans) has gone largely unnoticed by the mainstream press. I'm informed by those in the know that this new technique for isolating stem cells and their genes is a very important advance. It has the potential to greatly speed up further new work on stem cell therapies. With techniques essential to stem cell research under legislative threat worldwide, greater speed is essential. Working cures are the only thing that will stifle talk of banning medical research, so full speed ahead I say!

Longevity Meme Mailserver Glitch Fixed (December 13 2003)
http://www.longevitymeme.org/newsletter
Due to a temporary glitch in our outgoing mailserver, you may have been unable to sign up for or remove yourself from the Longevity Meme Newsletter for the past few days. If this is the case, and you have not already heard from us directly, please go ahead and try again now that the problem is fixed. Apologies all round, but at least the rest of the move to a new server went smoothly. The next newsletter is sent out on Monday 15th, so now would be an excellent time to sign up!

Japanese Government Recommends Limited Stem Cell Research (December 13 2003)
http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2003/12/14/1071336795092.html
The Age briefly notes that a Japanese government panel has recommended allowing limited stem cell research on human embryos. This is better than no research, but it appears to be limited to treating serious hereditary diseases. Japanese scientists have made notable progress over the past year in a number of stem cell therapies related to heart and eye regeneration, amongst others. These laudable efforts might be excluded. Still, this is a preliminary step; futher political discussions will come before any final conclusion and legislation.

Reminder: Immortality Institute Book Project (December 12 2003)
http://www.imminst.org/book
The Immortality Institute book project is accepting submissions until January 15th, 2004. A number of well-known names have offered contributions, including David Brin, Damien Broderick, James Halperin and Ray Kurzweil. The Institute is still looking for texts and high quality forum posts for inclusion, so feel free to jump on in if you think you can contribute. The book will focus on the scientific path to physical immortality, including topics on advanced medical research, healthy life extension, transhumanism and the associated culture and communities. It's an exciting project, and looks to be an exciting final product.

Reporting on the Phoenix Conference (December 12 2003)
http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/local/articles/1212nelongevity12.html
The Arizona Republic reports on the Phoenix Conference on Longevity Health Sciences in this article. The conference, currently underway, is hosted by the Kronos Longevity Research Institute, and covers a wide range of topics. Quote: "Kronos' stated aim in holding the conference is to separate fact from fiction amid a growing volume of scientific and non-scientific information on aging." More information is available at the conference website. Frequence and size of conferences are a measure of the health of any branch of science, and it is gratifying to see more happening in aging and healthy life extension research.

Another Longevity Mechanism Uncovered (December 12 2003)
http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?click_id=117&art_id=qw1071079741709B252&set_id=1
IOL reports that scientists have uncovered another biochemical longevity mechanism in nematode worms. The "TOR" protein is present in plants, animals and humans; it regulates metabolism and energy. By removing it, the life span of nematodes is nearly doubled. Scientists suggest that TOR may be involved in the mechanisms of calorie restriction, which have not yet been fully explored (although people are working on it). Knowledge is power. As science uncovers the mechanisms of longevity, we get closer to developing true anti-aging and healthy life extension therapies.

Shopping For Longevity (December 12 2003)
http://www.healthandage.com/Home/gm=20!gc=37!gid2=2732!gnews=01111203
Health and Age is reprinting some common sense advice on dealing with the "anti-aging" marketplace and working on your natural longevity. Some of the comments even mirror the way we at the Longevity Meme feel about these things: be a late adopter, use scientifically proven methods only, and stay healthy to benefit from the future of healthy life extension medicine. The most important thing to can do is to help ensure that medical progress continues unimpeded - your future health depends on the development of new and better medical technology!

Visit CAMR and Take Action (December 10 2003)
http://www.camradvocacy.org/
The Coalition for the Advancement of Medical Research has been a strong voice in the political debates over stem cell research and therapeutic cloning. They have made their views known in the UN debate, and are working to make these issues central in the 2004 US election. CAMR is doing a great job in defending our rights to research better medicine and cures for degenerative diseases of aging: they deserve your support and help. Visit the CAMR website and see how you can take a few minutes to help ensure a longer, healthier future. If we don't make our views known, we stand a good chance of having the most promising medical research - and cures already demonstrated in the laboratory - banned outright.

More On UN Therapeutic Cloning Ban (December 10 2003)
http://www.biomedcentral.com/news/20031210/05/
BioMed Central has more on the latest back and forth at the UN over therapeutic cloning, a foundational technology for stem cell therapies. This is a vital topic for medical research, especially for people in nations like the US, where the administration is attempting to bypass US senate deliberations to enact an ideological agenda. It is horrifying that so many politicians are dead set on preventing cures for heart disease, nerve damage, Parkinson's and much more. We must speak out and make our views known! Our future health and longevity is at stake.

UN Puts Off Therapeutic Cloning Ban Again (December 09 2003)
http://www.wired.com/news/medtech/0,1286,61528,00.html?tw=wn_tophead_3
As noted at Wired, the UN has again voted to postpone any consideration of a global therapeutic cloning ban (which would also ban most work on stem cell therapies for cancer, Parkinson's, nerve damage, and so forth). This time the delay is only for a year, but it looks like the anti-research forces led by the US administration are going to have to accept this defeat. As damaging legislation is put off, scientists working on stem cell and therapeutic cloning medicine can demonstrate amazing payoffs. This said, it's is a sad statement on human nature that we are even fighting political battles over whether or not to cure deadly diseases.

Yes, We Can Have It All (December 09 2003)
http://www.sagecrossroads.com/news_120103.cfm
"Labs around the world are crawling with prodigiously long-lived flies, worms, and mice." Starting from that comment, SAGE Crossroads proceeds to debunk the idea that increased longevity requires a trade-off in some other aspect of life or health. While there are always dissenters, it doesn't look like the naysayers have a very compelling case in this instance. Research to date does indeed present a good case that - through advances in medical science - we could have it all: radically increased healthy life span with no significant downside. Of course, this is dependant on funding and public support, which is why we need activism and education.

New Stem Cell Based Cancer Therapy (December 09 2003)
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2003/12/031208141008.htm
An article at ScienceDaily (found via Transhumanity) discusses a new potential cancer cure currently in the labs: number 18 since we started keeping count in late 2002. The cancer therapy field is poised for a real explosion in effectiveness and range of therapies. This one is especially novel: stem cells seek out cancer cells and produce biological killing agents on site. It is even capable of attacking metastasized cancer - an amazing breakthrough in the field if verified. Defeating cancer is vital to healthy life extension, and enormous strides are being made.

Quackwatch Is Your Friend (December 08 2003)
http://www.quackwatch.org
Navigating through the morass of information relating to healthy life extension is a horrid process, especially if you are new to it all. Most of it is worthless, or even dangerous, put out by "anti-aging" groups trying to make money from products that don't work. It can take years to sort out the good from the bad, who to avoid and who to trust. This was one of the reasons for founding the Longevity Meme - to provide a better starting point. When doing your own research, Quackwatch is a good, solid, conservative resource.

HGH Supplement "Bait and Switch" (December 08 2003)
http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=healthNews&storyID=3957588
Continuing the hormone supplement theme, here is a Reuters article on false advertising and bad science in the human growth hormone (HGH) "anti-aging" marketplace. The scientific backing for the effectiveness of HGH in extending healthy lifespan is nowhere near as solid as vendors would have you believe (see Quackwatch on this topic, for example), and the supplement products don't actually put HGH into your system in any case. That a widespread and wealthy industry exists to market these worthless products is a part of the problem facing real anti-aging and healthy life extension research. The fraudsters and quacks make it hard for potential funders to identify useful efforts from nonsense, and so funding remains at a low level.

Study Underlines Unknowns Relating to DHEA (December 07 2003)
http://www.ajc.com/health/content/shared-auto/healthnews/agng/516330.html
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution notes the uncertainty that surrounds the use and biochemistry of DHEA, a hormone supplement. Like growth hormone (HGH), it is heavily promoted in the "anti-aging" marketplace, but reliable, solid science to support the claims (as in the case of calorie restriction) just isn't there. A quote: "We don't know what the normal function of this hormone is in young adults, and we have no idea why we have this hormone." The article also offers some links to further resources on the topic.

Lifeline Nutraceuticals and CereMedix (December 07 2003)
http://www.denverpost.com/Stories/0,1413,36~33~1812940,00.html
An article in the Denver Post sheds some more light on what Lifeline Nutraceuticals and CereMedix have been up to with their new antioxidant supplement. There is talk of a human trial next year, which would be the first step towards the needed widespread scientific confirmation of their claims. This article is also a telling insight into the damage that the snake oil "anti-aging" industry has done to the prospects of any legitimate product. We all have to be skeptical (of Lifeline as well) because so many hucksters, frauds and suave marketing departments make millions by selling worthless junk.

ABCNews Covers Calorie Restriction (December 06 2003)
http://abcnews.go.com/sections/2020/Living/calorie_restriction_diet_031205-1.html
It's always good to see healthy life extension concepts making it into the mainstream media in a well-balanced way, as recently happened with the ABCNews coverage of calorie restriction. If you want to find out more about calorie restriction, you should read our introduction here at the Longevity Meme, and then saunter over to the CR Society for more information. The society members are a friendly, helpful crowd and their website provides all the useful calorie restriction resources you'll need.

More On Repeated UN Therapeutic Cloning Ban (December 06 2003)
http://www.wired.com/news/medtech/0,1286,61461,00.html?tw=wn_tophead_4
Wired is carrying an article with more information on the possible repeat attempt to enact a UN ban on therapeutic cloning. Therapeutic cloning is a core technology for new and very promising regenerative medicine research - cures for many degenerative conditions of aging appear to be possible in the near future. It is clear that pro-medicine, pro-research groups need louder voices at governmental and international levels. These attacks on medical research can only lead to more death and suffering as better therapies are postponed or banned.

The Independent on Healthy Life Extension (December 05 2003)
http://news.independent.co.uk/world/science_medical/story.jsp?story=469637
The Independent discusses extending the healthy life span and research on nematode worms in this recent article. A quote: "these findings in the nematode show that remarkable lifespan extensions can be produced with no apparent loss of health or vitality, by perturbing a small number of genes and tissues in an animal." The article stops short of advocating increased overall life span in humans, but I think it's clear that healthy life extension ideas are now mainstream. So tell a friend about the Longevity Meme today!

Suspended Animation Drops Boca Raton Effort (December 05 2003)
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/local/southflorida/sfl-124cryonicsboca,0,1552625.story?coll=sfla-home-headlines
(From the Sun-Sentinel). Cryonics research company Suspended Animation have dropped their efforts to fight the Boca Raton city council. It looks fairly clear that the expected result in January will be another refusal, so the company will focus on finding a new Florida location for their research. A victory for the luddites here, unfortunately - but the efforts of everyone who wrote, called and turned out in support are greatly appreciated. Research into cryonics is vital to the growth, professionalism and validity of this industry; it is a great pity that short sighted and unscientific opponents think otherwise.

It's Never Too Late To Start Exercising (December 04 2003)
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2003-12/jdc-int120403.php
I like to post reminders about general health and natural longevity every so often. Here is one from EurekAlert that discusses recent studies on the effects of sensible diet and exercise. As we should all know by now, losing weight and engaging in moderate daily exercise greatly improves health at all ages. By improving health in this way, you improve your natural longevity. By improving your natural longevity, you stand a much better chance of being healthy and active to benefit from future anti-aging medicines. Your health is important, so work on it!

Links Between Growth Hormone and Regeneration (December 04 2003)
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2003/12/031204074202.htm
As noted at Science Daily, researchers have further explored the biochemical link between growth hormone and a gene that controls at least some tissue regeneration. From the article: "Growth hormone levels decline as we grow older; as a result, the Foxm1b gene stops working and our bodies are less capable of repairing damage." This is early work (in mice) and certainly not yet an endorsement of growth hormone therapies - which have had mixed results in scientific studies.

Understanding Genetic Damage (December 03 2003)
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2003/12/031203075629.htm
Understanding why and how damage to our genes accumulates with age is the first step towards preventing this part of aging. This article from ScienceDaily describes some very clever work that advances our knowledge of the way in which genes are damaged in cells with worn telomeres. A separate article at the LEF News notes an advance in understanding why DNA repair becomes less efficient in older cells. All in all, very interesting stuff. The path to doing something about blocking the genetic mutations that lead to age-related conditions is becoming clearer with each year of funded research.

SAGE Crossroads on Errant Bioethicists (December 03 2003)
http://www.sagecrossroads.com/news_112403.cfm
An article at SAGE Crossroads comments on recent report from the President's Council on Bioethics. The report starts by giving a promising view of the developing technologies of healthy life extension, but then falls off the cliff into fear of change and advocacy for suffering, shorter life spans, and death. Leon Kass, chair of the Council, is strongly opposed to allowing healthy life extension of any sort - a cruel and ugly position to be advocating, but one that suits the current anti-research US administration just fine. Fortunately, it seems that at least some bioethicists are sensible enough to oppose Kass and his ilk.

New View of Link Between Aging and Artery Disease (December 02 2003)
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2003-12/dumc-dco120103.php
As reported by EurekAlert, scientists are coming to a better understanding of the mechanisms that link aging, atherosclerosis and heart disease. Researchers at Duke University Medical Center believe that the ability of the body to repair age-related damage through bone marrow stem cells determines health in later life. Serious problems do not start to arise until this natural regenerative capacity - which is believed to be finite - runs out. With the current research focus on stem cells, this new viewpoint offers further obvious avenues for work towards anti-aging therapies.

There's More Future in Your Future (December 02 2003)
http://www.techcentralstation.com/120203E.html
Michael Fumento offers an overview of the past few years of healthy life extension research and associated opinions at Tech Central Station. He dings naysayers in the scientific community (Hayflick and Olshansky) on the grounds of circular reasoning and invalid extrapolation of past trends - a point that needs to be seen in print more often. Research is accelerating, and we cannot look to the past to predict the future. On the topic of political opposition from the likes of Leon Kass, he notes that "like all biotechnology, lifespan extension is merely a tool. It's up to us how it's used."

Bush Administration Still Trying For Global Stem Cell Ban (December 01 2003)
http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/N01259236.htm
AlertNet reports that the Bush administration is still trying hard to push a global ban on stem cell research and therapeutic cloning at the United Nations. The body recently voted (by a narrow margin) to delay any such proposal until 2005, but the US may try to overturn that vote. A ban on stem cell research would have devastating consequences on our future health and longevity: this field is a cornerstone in the search for regenerative medicine to cure the degenerative conditions of aging. Write to your representatives today!

Startling Progress In Tissue Engineering (December 01 2003)
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2003/12/031201064329.htm
Tissue engineering is a branch of regenerative medicine devoted to growing complex replacement organs from scratch, using stem cell techniques. ScienceDaily notes that UIC researchers have engineered a joint from adult stem cells, with the correct structure, bone and cartilage. This is an impressive step forward, and offers the hope of - for example - completely organic hip replacements using the patient's own stem cells. There is, of course, much more work to do yet; hence the need for more funding and more public awareness for these sorts of advances.

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Do you have comments for us, or want to discuss the newsletter?

Ray Kurzweil, influential inventor and futurist, has given his stamp of approval (and a modest donation) to the Methuselah Mouse Prize. This effort is an ambitious, well-received attempt to revive scientific anti-aging research. By encouraging scientists, educating the public and stimulating funding, we can help to make near term anti-aging therapies a reality. The prize was also recently endorsed by William Haseltine, CEO of Human Genome Sciences and Bob Gelfond, MagicQ founder. Donations are currently being matched 1:2 by a challenge grant, so now is a great time to make a tax-deductible donation. Let's help get the prize to the first $50,000 milestone!

Link: http://www.methuselahmouse.org/news/Kurzweil.htm

This research (reported on here by Betterhumans) has gone largely unnoticed by the mainstream press. I'm informed by those in the know that this new technique for isolating stem cells and their genes is a very important advance. It has the potential to greatly speed up further new work on stem cell therapies. With techniques essential to stem cell research under legislative threat worldwide, greater speed is essential. Working cures are the only thing that will stifle talk of banning medical research, so full speed ahead I say!

Link: http://www.betterhumans.com/News/news.aspx?articleID=2003-12-11-4

Due to a temporary glitch in our outgoing mailserver, you may have been unable to sign up for or remove yourself from the Longevity Meme Newsletter for the past few days. If this is the case, and you have not already heard from us directly, please go ahead and try again now that the problem is fixed. Apologies all round, but at least the rest of the move to a new server went smoothly. The next newsletter is sent out on Monday 15th, so now would be an excellent time to sign up!

Link: http://www.longevitymeme.org/newsletter

The Age briefly notes that a Japanese government panel has recommended allowing limited stem cell research on human embryos. This is better than no research, but it appears to be limited to treating serious hereditary diseases. Japanese scientists have made notable progress over the past year in a number of stem cell therapies related to heart and eye regeneration, amongst others. These laudable efforts might be excluded. Still, this is a preliminary step; futher political discussions will come before any final conclusion and legislation.

Link: http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2003/12/14/1071336795092.html

The Immortality Institute book project is accepting submissions until January 15th, 2004. A number of well-known names have offered contributions, including David Brin, Damien Broderick, James Halperin and Ray Kurzweil. The Institute is still looking for texts and high quality forum posts for inclusion, so feel free to jump on in if you think you can contribute. The book will focus on the scientific path to physical immortality, including topics on advanced medical research, healthy life extension, transhumanism and the associated culture and communities. It's an exciting project, and looks to be an exciting final product.

Link: http://www.imminst.org/book

The Arizona Republic reports on the Phoenix Conference on Longevity Health Sciences in this article. The conference, currently underway, is hosted by the Kronos Longevity Research Institute, and covers a wide range of topics. Quote: "Kronos' stated aim in holding the conference is to separate fact from fiction amid a growing volume of scientific and non-scientific information on aging." More information is available at the conference website. Frequence and size of conferences are a measure of the health of any branch of science, and it is gratifying to see more happening in aging and healthy life extension research.

Link: http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/local/articles/1212nelongevity12.html

IOL reports that scientists have uncovered another biochemical longevity mechanism in nematode worms. The "TOR" protein is present in plants, animals and humans; it regulates metabolism and energy. By removing it, the life span of nematodes is nearly doubled. Scientists suggest that TOR may be involved in the mechanisms of calorie restriction, which have not yet been fully explored (although people are working on it). Knowledge is power. As science uncovers the mechanisms of longevity, we get closer to developing true anti-aging and healthy life extension therapies.

Link: http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?click_id=117&art_id=qw1071079741709B252&set_id=1

Health and Age is reprinting some common sense advice on dealing with the "anti-aging" marketplace and working on your natural longevity. Some of the comments even mirror the way we at the Longevity Meme feel about these things: be a late adopter, use scientifically proven methods only, and stay healthy to benefit from the future of healthy life extension medicine. The most important thing to can do is to help ensure that medical progress continues unimpeded - your future health depends on the development of new and better medical technology!

Link: http://www.healthandage.com/Home/gm=20!gc=37!gid2=2732!gnews=01111203

The Coalition for the Advancement of Medical Research has been a strong voice in the political debates over stem cell research and therapeutic cloning. They have made their views known in the UN debate, and are working to make these issues central in the 2004 US election. CAMR is doing a great job in defending our rights to research better medicine and cures for degenerative diseases of aging: they deserve your support and help. Visit the CAMR website and see how you can take a few minutes to help ensure a longer, healthier future. If we don't make our views known, we stand a good chance of having the most promising medical research - and cures already demonstrated in the laboratory - banned outright.

Link: http://www.camradvocacy.org/

BioMed Central has more on the latest back and forth at the UN over therapeutic cloning, a foundational technology for stem cell therapies. This is a vital topic for medical research, especially for people in nations like the US, where the administration is attempting to bypass US senate deliberations to enact an ideological agenda. It is horrifying that so many politicians are dead set on preventing cures for heart disease, nerve damage, Parkinson's and much more. We must speak out and make our views known! Our future health and longevity is at stake.

Link: http://www.biomedcentral.com/news/20031210/05/

As noted at Wired, the UN has again voted to postpone any consideration of a global therapeutic cloning ban (which would also ban most work on stem cell therapies for cancer, Parkinson's, nerve damage, and so forth). This time the delay is only for a year, but it looks like the anti-research forces led by the US administration are going to have to accept this defeat. As damaging legislation is put off, scientists working on stem cell and therapeutic cloning medicine can demonstrate amazing payoffs. This said, it's is a sad statement on human nature that we are even fighting political battles over whether or not to cure deadly diseases.

Link: http://www.wired.com/news/medtech/0,1286,61528,00.html?tw=wn_tophead_3

"Labs around the world are crawling with prodigiously long-lived flies, worms, and mice." Starting from that comment, SAGE Crossroads proceeds to debunk the idea that increased longevity requires a trade-off in some other aspect of life or health. While there are always dissenters, it doesn't look like the naysayers have a very compelling case in this instance. Research to date does indeed present a good case that - through advances in medical science - we could have it all: radically increased healthy life span with no significant downside. Of course, this is dependant on funding and public support, which is why we need activism and education.

Link: http://www.sagecrossroads.com/news_120103.cfm

An article at ScienceDaily (found via Transhumanity) discusses a new potential cancer cure currently in the labs: number 18 since we started keeping count in late 2002. The cancer therapy field is poised for a real explosion in effectiveness and range of therapies. This one is especially novel: stem cells seek out cancer cells and produce biological killing agents on site. It is even capable of attacking metastasized cancer - an amazing breakthrough in the field if verified. Defeating cancer is vital to healthy life extension, and enormous strides are being made.

Link: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2003/12/031208141008.htm

Navigating through the morass of information relating to healthy life extension is a horrid process, especially if you are new to it all. Most of it is worthless, or even dangerous, put out by "anti-aging" groups trying to make money from products that don't work. It can take years to sort out the good from the bad, who to avoid and who to trust. This was one of the reasons for founding the Longevity Meme - to provide a better starting point. When doing your own research, Quackwatch is a good, solid, conservative resource.

Link: http://www.quackwatch.org

Continuing the hormone supplement theme, here is a Reuters article on false advertising and bad science in the human growth hormone (HGH) "anti-aging" marketplace. The scientific backing for the effectiveness of HGH in extending healthy lifespan is nowhere near as solid as vendors would have you believe (see Quackwatch on this topic, for example), and the supplement products don't actually put HGH into your system in any case. That a widespread and wealthy industry exists to market these worthless products is a part of the problem facing real anti-aging and healthy life extension research. The fraudsters and quacks make it hard for potential funders to identify useful efforts from nonsense, and so funding remains at a low level.

Link: http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=healthNews&storyID=3957588

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution notes the uncertainty that surrounds the use and biochemistry of DHEA, a hormone supplement. Like growth hormone (HGH), it is heavily promoted in the "anti-aging" marketplace, but reliable, solid science to support the claims (as in the case of calorie restriction) just isn't there. A quote: "We don't know what the normal function of this hormone is in young adults, and we have no idea why we have this hormone." The article also offers some links to further resources on the topic.

Link: http://www.ajc.com/health/content/shared-auto/healthnews/agng/516330.html

An article in the Denver Post sheds some more light on what Lifeline Nutraceuticals and CereMedix have been up to with their new antioxidant supplement. There is talk of a human trial next year, which would be the first step towards the needed widespread scientific confirmation of their claims. This article is also a telling insight into the damage that the snake oil "anti-aging" industry has done to the prospects of any legitimate product. We all have to be skeptical (of Lifeline as well) because so many hucksters, frauds and suave marketing departments make millions by selling worthless junk.

Link: http://www.denverpost.com/Stories/0,1413,36~33~1812940,00.html

It's always good to see healthy life extension concepts making it into the mainstream media in a well-balanced way, as recently happened with the ABCNews coverage of calorie restriction. If you want to find out more about calorie restriction, you should read our introduction here at the Longevity Meme, and then saunter over to the CR Society for more information. The society members are a friendly, helpful crowd and their website provides all the useful calorie restriction resources you'll need.

Link: http://abcnews.go.com/sections/2020/Living/calorie_restriction_diet_031205-1.html

Wired is carrying an article with more information on the possible repeat attempt to enact a UN ban on therapeutic cloning. Therapeutic cloning is a core technology for new and very promising regenerative medicine research - cures for many degenerative conditions of aging appear to be possible in the near future. It is clear that pro-medicine, pro-research groups need louder voices at governmental and international levels. These attacks on medical research can only lead to more death and suffering as better therapies are postponed or banned.

Link: http://www.wired.com/news/medtech/0,1286,61461,00.html?tw=wn_tophead_4

The Independent discusses extending the healthy life span and research on nematode worms in this recent article. A quote: "these findings in the nematode show that remarkable lifespan extensions can be produced with no apparent loss of health or vitality, by perturbing a small number of genes and tissues in an animal." The article stops short of advocating increased overall life span in humans, but I think it's clear that healthy life extension ideas are now mainstream. So tell a friend about the Longevity Meme today!

Link: http://news.independent.co.uk/world/science_medical/story.jsp?story=469637

(From the Sun-Sentinel). Cryonics research company Suspended Animation have dropped their efforts to fight the Boca Raton city council. It looks fairly clear that the expected result in January will be another refusal, so the company will focus on finding a new Florida location for their research. A victory for the luddites here, unfortunately - but the efforts of everyone who wrote, called and turned out in support are greatly appreciated. Research into cryonics is vital to the growth, professionalism and validity of this industry; it is a great pity that short sighted and unscientific opponents think otherwise.

Link: http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/local/southflorida/sfl-124cryonicsboca,0,1552625.story?coll=sfla-home-headlines

I like to post reminders about general health and natural longevity every so often. Here is one from EurekAlert that discusses recent studies on the effects of sensible diet and exercise. As we should all know by now, losing weight and engaging in moderate daily exercise greatly improves health at all ages. By improving health in this way, you improve your natural longevity. By improving your natural longevity, you stand a much better chance of being healthy and active to benefit from future anti-aging medicines. Your health is important, so work on it!

Link: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2003-12/jdc-int120403.php

As noted at Science Daily, researchers have further explored the biochemical link between growth hormone and a gene that controls at least some tissue regeneration. From the article: "Growth hormone levels decline as we grow older; as a result, the Foxm1b gene stops working and our bodies are less capable of repairing damage." This is early work (in mice) and certainly not yet an endorsement of growth hormone therapies - which have had mixed results in scientific studies.

Link: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2003/12/031204074202.htm

Understanding why and how damage to our genes accumulates with age is the first step towards preventing this part of aging. This article from ScienceDaily describes some very clever work that advances our knowledge of the way in which genes are damaged in cells with worn telomeres. A separate article at the LEF News notes an advance in understanding why DNA repair becomes less efficient in older cells. All in all, very interesting stuff. The path to doing something about blocking the genetic mutations that lead to age-related conditions is becoming clearer with each year of funded research.

Link: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2003/12/031203075629.htm

An article at SAGE Crossroads comments on recent report from the President's Council on Bioethics. The report starts by giving a promising view of the developing technologies of healthy life extension, but then falls off the cliff into fear of change and advocacy for suffering, shorter life spans, and death. Leon Kass, chair of the Council, is strongly opposed to allowing healthy life extension of any sort - a cruel and ugly position to be advocating, but one that suits the current anti-research US administration just fine. Fortunately, it seems that at least some bioethicists are sensible enough to oppose Kass and his ilk.

Link: http://www.sagecrossroads.com/news_112403.cfm

As reported by EurekAlert, scientists are coming to a better understanding of the mechanisms that link aging, atherosclerosis and heart disease. Researchers at Duke University Medical Center believe that the ability of the body to repair age-related damage through bone marrow stem cells determines health in later life. Serious problems do not start to arise until this natural regenerative capacity - which is believed to be finite - runs out. With the current research focus on stem cells, this new viewpoint offers further obvious avenues for work towards anti-aging therapies.

Link: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2003-12/dumc-dco120103.php

Michael Fumento offers an overview of the past few years of healthy life extension research and associated opinions at Tech Central Station. He dings naysayers in the scientific community (Hayflick and Olshansky) on the grounds of circular reasoning and invalid extrapolation of past trends - a point that needs to be seen in print more often. Research is accelerating, and we cannot look to the past to predict the future. On the topic of political opposition from the likes of Leon Kass, he notes that "like all biotechnology, lifespan extension is merely a tool. It's up to us how it's used."

Link: http://www.techcentralstation.com/120203E.html

AlertNet reports that the Bush administration is still trying hard to push a global ban on stem cell research and therapeutic cloning at the United Nations. The body recently voted (by a narrow margin) to delay any such proposal until 2005, but the US may try to overturn that vote. A ban on stem cell research would have devastating consequences on our future health and longevity: this field is a cornerstone in the search for regenerative medicine to cure the degenerative conditions of aging. Write to your representatives today!

Link: http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/N01259236.htm

Tissue engineering is a branch of regenerative medicine devoted to growing complex replacement organs from scratch, using stem cell techniques. ScienceDaily notes that UIC researchers have engineered a joint from adult stem cells, with the correct structure, bone and cartilage. This is an impressive step forward, and offers the hope of - for example - completely organic hip replacements using the patient's own stem cells. There is, of course, much more work to do yet; hence the need for more funding and more public awareness for these sorts of advances.

Link: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2003/12/031201064329.htm

LONGEVITY MEME NEWSLETTER
December 01 2003

The Longevity Meme Newsletter is a biweekly 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.

______________________________

CONTENTS

o- Why Medical Research Matters To You
o- How To Make a Longer, Healthier Future
o- Human Genome Sciences CEO Endorses Methuselah Foundation
o- Download the Life-a-thon Desktop Companion
o- Discussion
o- Latest Healthy Life Extension News Headlines

WHY MEDICAL RESEARCH MATTERS TO YOU

Please do take a moment to read the Introduction to Healthy Life Extension at the Longevity Meme if you haven't done so already. You can find it by following the link below:

http://www.longevitymeme.org/start_on_healthy_life_extension.cfm

The Longevity Meme itself - the collection of ideas, viewpoints and behaviors that will enable people to lead long, healthy and extended lives - is expressed as three steps:

Step 1: Stop Damaging Your Health
Step 2: Adopt a Better Diet and Lifestyle
Step 3: Support Medical Research

Steps 1 and 2 are there to make sure that you are alive, healthy and active to benefit from the results of step 3. As I discussed in the last Longevity Meme newsletter (under "ON NATURAL LONGEVITY"), the ability to benefit from the medicine of the future is the real reason to work at your natural longevity:

http://www.longevitymeme.org/newsletter/view_newsletter.cfm?newsletter_id=44

Like it or not, however, enhancing your natural longevity will all be for naught in the end, if not for success in step 3. The future of our health and longevity depends absolutely on medical progress: on cures yet to be completed, on a better understanding of the aging process, on personalized medicine through genetics and proteomics, on perfecting stem cell therapies, and many other works in progress. The near future of medicine is promising, but it is not here yet and there is many a slip between cup and lip. There is no lifestyle, product or technology available today that will do more than modestly delay the onset of degenerative conditions of aging and eventual death.

You cannot spend money and time on healthy life extension products that don't yet exist, but you can help to ensure that real anti-aging and regenerative medicine will exist when you need it. Science has demonstrated great progress towards these goals in the past decade, but funding and public awareness are sorely lacking. There is the real possibility that - if we do nothing - healthy life extension might arrive too late. By standing up to make a difference now, however people from all backgrounds can help to ensure a longer, healthier future for everyone. As an organization, the Longevity Meme aims to make it easier for you to do just this. Follow the link below to see how you can take a little time to help out:

http://www.longevitymeme.org/projects/

HOW TO MAKE A LONGER, HEALTHIER FUTURE

The latest article at the Longevity Meme is entitled "Activism For Healthy Life Extension," a little meditation on what you should be doing in order to obtain a longer life and lasting, excellent health.

"Despite widespread apathy, disinterest and ignorance of science in our society, there has been a real growth in size and sophistication of healthy life extension communities in the past few years. As a group united in our vision for a better future, we have come to the point of being able to say: "We want to live healthily for longer. We want real, meaningful healthy life extension therapies. What shall we do to make it all happen?" This is the key question!" Follow the link below to read more:

http://www.longevitymeme.org/articles/viewarticle.cfm?article_id=16&page=1

HUMAN GENOME SCIENCES CEO ENDORSES METHUSELAH FOUNDATION

I have to thank all of you who have donated to the Methuselah Mouse prize since the official launch a few short months ago. This is the only current prize encouraging anti-aging and healthy life extension medical research. As such, it's an important effort and is being watched carefully by scientists and philanthropists - if it succeeds, we can expect more and bigger efforts to follow. Those of us who have been pitching in behind the scenes are pleased as punch to see the fund growing so quickly after inception, and we're even more pleased to have the endorsement of William Haseltine, respected CEO of Human Genome Sciences.

http://www.methuselahmouse.org/news/

It's thanks to the first donors that the prize has been able to attract so much press, industry attention and the endorsement of biotech luminaries. My hat is off to you all.

If you haven't donated to the Methuselah Mouse prize yet, please do give it some thought.

http://www.methuselahmouse.org/donate.htm

The prize is making waves in the ways in which the public and scientific establishment view serious anti-aging research. This is your chance to make waves in your future healthy and longevity, so jump on in and do it!

DOWNLOAD THE LIFE-A-THON DESKTOP COMPANION

The Methuselah Foundation, in connection with the Methuselah Mouse Prize, has released the Life-a-thon desktop companion software, a free download. Stay abreast of the latest healthy life extension news with the scrolling news ticker, and read headlines on the latest medical and longevity related breakthroughs with the RSS news feed browser. You can keep track of the prize in real time and view new donations instantly - see your name in lights! The included lifeline analysis tool allows you to plot a graph of your expected lifespan and the predicted effect the prize will have on it.

http://www.methuselahmouse.org/tote.htm

Try it out today; have fun with it! If you have comments, suggestions or any problems, you can join a growing thread in the Immortality Institute forums dedicated to the Life-a-thon:

http://imminst.org/forum/index.php?act=ST&f=1&t=2169

DISCUSSION

That would be all for this issue of the newsletter; the highlights and headlines from the past two weeks follow below.

Remember - if you like this newsletter, the chances are that your friends will find it useful too. Forward the newsletter on by all means, or post it to your online communities. Encourage the people you know to pitch in and make a difference to the future of health and longevity!

Reason

Founder, Longevity Meme

LATEST HEALTHY LIFE EXTENSION NEWS HEADLINES

Christopher Reeve: Politics Delaying Medical Research (November 30 2003)
http://www.healthday.com/view.cfm?id=516283
In a snippet at HealthDay (scroll down on the page to see it), Christopher Reeve notes that stem cell and therapeutic cloning research has been significantly held back by political interference. Quote: "I think we're about five years behind where we could have been in this country because of controversy over kinds of research, particularly stem cell research." Christopher Reeve is an outstanding research advocate, and his work helps people like you and I. Take a little time to tell Christopher Reeve that you support his cause.

Seeking a Cure For Ideology (November 30 2003)
http://www.palmbeachpost.com/opinion/content/auto/epaper/editions/friday/opinion_f36ce8eb01f312141081.html
At the Palm Beach Post, an editorial on anti-research attitudes in the US administration. President Bush, the President's Council on Bioethics and other appointees are trampling over vital medical research in their rush to force ideologies into law. Researchers now claim that we're five years behind in stem cell and theraputic cloning medicine; that's five years further away from cures for heart disease, Parkinson's, Alzheimer's, nerve damage, diabetes and even aging itself. We cannot let this attack on health and medicine continue unopposed! Take a few minutes today to step up and see how you can help.

Political Nonsense From the NIH (November 29 2003)
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2001802227_stem27.html
The Seattle Times carries comments from the head of the National Institutes of Health on the state of stem cell research. I might talk about baldfaced lying and political yes-men, but I'll settle for saying that Elias Zerhouni seems to be far removed from reality on this topic. Stem cell scientists - the people best positioned to know - and basic common sense have been telling us for years that current US administration policies are deliberately causing serious harm to vital medical research. No amount of political doublespeak can change that truth.

Understanding Age-Related Muscle Loss (November 29 2003)
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2003/11/031128082237.htm
As reported by ScienceDaily, researchers at Stanford have found a molecular link between older muscles and slow healing. This work could lead to a way to prevent muscle atrophy due to aging. This initial biomedical research is the first step in the path to a therapy, but the scientists have demonstrated that older muscles in mice can be convinced to regenerate as if young by blocking a certain molecular pathway. There is still a lot to learn, and much more research before any resulting therapy could enter initial trials, but it is reassuring to see science making progress towards fixing the various degenerative conditions of aging.

Working Towards Artificial Eyes (November 28 2003)
http://www.swissinfo.org/sen/Swissinfo.html?siteSect=511&sid=4415302
SwissInfo reports on progress in developing an artifical microchip retina to cure certain types of blindness. Bionics (and regenerative medicine based on stem cell therapies) for the eye have been progressing in leaps and bounds over the past few years. The outlook for people who suffer or expect to suffer from age-related blindness is certainly rosier than in past decades, but we're not quite there yet. As for all other fields of bionics and regenerative medicine, more funding and less government interference is needed.

Ireland Divided On Stem Cell Research (November 27 2003)
http://www.biomedcentral.com/news/20031126/03/
BioMed Central reports on the heated discussion in Ireland over funding stem cell research. The current European Union debate requires support from European science ministers, which has led to EU discussions repeated in miniature within member nations. The outcome of the final confirming vote on the EU framework looks uncertain, but the discussion over funding means that any discussion of a ban is out of the picture. This is a very good thing, as the threat of a ban on stem cell research has been causing great damage to medical progress.

Developing A Body Repair Kit From Blood? (November 27 2003)
http://www.newscientist.com/news/news.jsp?id=ns99994418
The New Scientist examines the recent claims of advances in stem cell research by a UK company called TriStem. The research has not yet been widely confirmed by independent scientific review (and is thus suspect), but if true it is very promising indeed. In short, TriStem claim to be able to get adult stem cells to behave like embryonic stem cells. This would speed development of regenerative medicine, sidestep ethical and legislative concerns and lower costs all round. The article notes that the first peer-reviewed confirmation has just appeared, but scientists are still justifiably skeptical.

William Haseltine Supports Methuselah Mouse Prize (November 26 2003)
http://www.methuselahmouse.org/news/
William Haseltine, Chairman and CEO of Human Genome Sciences, has become the latest luminary to support the Methuselah Mouse Prize through donation. We are pleased to see the Methuselah Foundation obtain this endorsement from one of the most respected names in the biotech field. Since William Haseltine believes in the goals of the Methuselah Mouse prize, isn't it time that you donated to help ensure your future health and longevity? Remember to download the new Life-a-thon software and give it a whirl - see your donations increase the prize fund in real time!

Immortality Institute Book Project (November 26 2003)
http://imminst.org/book/
The Immortality Insitute has announced a book of essays and discussions for publication in 2004, with proceeds going towards the first Immortality Institute conference in 2005. Organization is proceeding apace, and submissions on basic and advanced issues relating to the development of physical immortality through science are being sought. The deadline for submissions is January 15, 2004, but earlier is always better. If you would like to talk about the planned book or find out more from the editors, jump into the Immortality Institute forums and have your say.

Leonard Hayflick's Pessimism (November 25 2003)
http://www.upi.com/view.cfm?StoryID=20031124-034745-5824r
This article from UPI sheds some light on part of the scientific debate over longevity and aging. Leonard Hayflick is one of the most pessimistic gerontologists when it comes to extending the healthy human lifespan; given his influence, his position on the possibility of healthy life extension is an unfortunately one. Most mainstream gerontologists - who are still too pessimistic in our eyes - disagree with Hayflick, even if they are not as directed and upbeat as Aubrey de Grey.

Activism For Healthy Life Extension (November 25 2003)
http://www.longevitymeme.org/articles/viewarticle.cfm?page=1&article_id=16
The latest Longevity Meme article is a punchy piece on the role of activism in healthy life extension. Once you've stood up and decided that a far longer, far healthier life is what you want, what next? Read the article and then see how you can take action to help ensure the development of real anti-aging medicine and a longer, healthier future for all of us. Remember: the third step of healthy life extension is supporting medical research. Your future health depends as much on the advance of medicine as it does on staying healthy in the here and now.

Red Sea Urchins "Almost Immortal" (November 24 2003)
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/3232002.stm
This story (reported here by the BBC) has been doing the rounds for the past week or two. It's certainly interesting, even if it doesn't have immediate relevance to healthy life extension research. Examples of natural healthy longevity - extreme longevity in this case - in the animal kingdom are an open invitation to study the biochemistry and genetics of these species. By doing so, we might gain further insight into how best to fight aging in humans. At the very least, those who decry longer, healthier lifespans as being unnatural can be pointed in the direction of the very natural and very long-lived red urchin.

Download Methuselah Mouse "Life-A-Thon" (November 24 2003)
http://www.methuselahmouse.org/tote.htm
The Life-a-thon is a useful little Java desktop application that keeps you up to date on the latest healthy life extension news and the Methuselah Mouse prize progress. The Methuselah Foundation likes to put its own spin on fundraising efforts, and this is an example of something new and interesting. You can also use the Life-a-thon to chart the projected effects of the prize on your healthy lifespan and make donations to help these projections actually happen. More new and helpful functions are promised in the future, so try it out!

Generating Adult Stem Cells For Regenerative Medicine (November 23 2003)
http://web.mit.edu/newsoffice/nr/2003/sherley.html
An MIT researcher has discovered how to temporarily make adult stem cells multiply like embryonic stem cells. This will be very useful when building stem cell lines for research, and gives further insight into the way in which such cells work. A quote: "If we want to do cell replacement therapy with stem cells, we have to be able to monitor them and avoid mutations that cause tumors in people." This research is a great step forward in that direction. You can learn more about stem cells at InfoAging.org.

Skeptical On Calorie Restriction (November 23 2003)
http://www.nytimes.com/2003/11/23/fashion/23DIET.html
A snide human interest article from the New York Times on calorie restriction appeared today (in the Fashion and Style section of all places). The author interviews a number of long-time practitioners of calorie restriction; unfortunately choosing to focus on quirks, skipping over the overwhelming scientific evidence for the health benefits of low calorie diets. Snide articles aside, calorie restriction is well worth investigating. It is the only currently proven method of extending your natural healthy longevity.

Confirmation Of Adult Stem Cell Heart Regeneration (November 22 2003)
http://www.canada.com/health/story.html?id=4B42FDFB-9A58-4AC0-B955-505CD6D52C0C
(From Canada.com). A Canadian doctor has confirmed that adult stem cells can be used to regenerate muscle tissue. In a sign of the times, much of the article is taken up with the doctor's desire to avoid having his work politicized: "I want to make sure I am cautious enough so this research will not be used for political reasons." "Nobody should exploit it to say we should stop studying embryonic stem cells." Politicians should stop interfering with medical research - they are slowing progress and damaging our future health and longevity.

Never Too Old For Exercise (November 22 2003)
http://www.fortwayne.com/mld/newssentinel/7318758.htm
Moderate exercise is key to extending your natural longevity, along with a low-calorie diet, sensible lifestyle choices and modest supplementation. This article from FortWayne.com reports on scientific studies showing that moderate exercise, even at a late stage in live, has a tremendous positive effect on cognitive skills and general health. A quote: "We saw significant cognitive improvement in people 55 and older over just six months." Working exercise into your schedule is essential to a healthy life - you really cannot afford to skip it, even if you are living healthily in other ways.

Aubrey de Grey at SAGE Crossroads (November 21 2003)
http://www.sagecrossroads.com/110503transcript.cfm
SAGE Crossroads have posted the transcript of the November 5th webcast debate involving Aubrey de Grey, cofounder of the Methuselah Mouse Prize. Dr. de Grey speaks his mind on the desired path forward for medical science, the possible obstacles and the timeline. He presents a coherent set of arguments for other scientists to build upon or argue with, and the comments from the other side of the debate are also interesting. All in all, an excellent debate - well worth reading and thinking about. Have you donated to the Methuselah Mouse Prize yet?

Working Towards The Bionic Body (November 21 2003)
http://www.msnbc.com/news/995248.asp?0dm=C12IV
An article at MSNBC underscores just how far medical science has come with prosthetic artificial replacements for worn body parts. Devices such as these are just as much medicine for longer, healthier lives as stem cell or therapeutic cloning therapies. It is fascinating to watch these two branches of medicine advance towards solving the same human problems. It looks likely that artificial replacements will contine to be important for joints and small bones even as regenerative medicine to repair age-related damage in softer tissues is brought to market.

Ceremedix To Make Pills In Scotland (November 20 2003)
http://www.news.scotsman.com/edinburgh.cfm?id=1271602003
According to this article from Scotsman.com, Ceremedix are planning to manufacture their new high-power antioxidant supplement in Scotland (it will be marketed by Lifeline Nutraceuticals). Regular readers will recall that this supplement did impressively well in laboratory tests, but we're still waiting for confirming science. Everything that can extend healthy life span - even a little - is a good thing, but remember that radical life extension will require more advanced medical technology: regenerative medicine, stem cell therapies, and much more funding for aging research.

Anti-Cancer Gene Therapy Available in China (November 20 2003)
http://www.betterhumans.com/News/news.aspx?articleID=2003-11-20-5
Betterhumans notes that the first of the new wave of effective cancer therapies is now commercially available in China. A big step forward in the fight against cancer! This one is a gene therapy that has performed very well in putting particular forms of cancer into remission; it is also expected to do well against other forms of cancer. Defeating cancer is one of the essential victories we need in order to extend healthy lifespan far beyond current limits. The prospects look very promising in this field right now.

Concerns Raised Over Medical Patent Provision (November 19 2003)
http://www.camradvocacy.org/fastaction/news.asp?id=723
In a recent press release, the Coalition for the Advancement of Medical Research raises concerns over an anti-patent provision in an upcoming appropriations bill. The provision would ban most medical patents pertaining to the field of therapeutic cloning and stem cell research - which would lead to a sharp decline in investment from the largest funders of such research. Less investment means less medical progress towards regenerative medicine for longer, healthier lives. CAMR sees this undebated provision as "a hasty, back-door attempt to stifle therapeutic cloning research."

European Parliament Backs Stem Cell Research (November 19 2003)
http://www.newscientist.com/news/news.jsp?id=ns99994404
(From the New Scientist). In a reversal from just a few months ago (when the European Parliament was well on the way to a stem cell research ban), MEPs have voted to support embryonic stem cell research with EU funds, rejecting restrictive and crippling amendments put forward by German MEPs. I think that we can consider this a victory, even though this is only a preliminary ("consultative") vote. It does seem that we are out of the woods in regard to any ban. EU research ministers will meet later for a final decision on this funding proposal.

Discover Magazine On Staying Alive (November 19 2003)
http://www.discover.com/issues/nov-03/cover/
Here is a good, long article from Discover on the recent history of mainstream scientific opinion regarding aging and extending the healthy human lifespan. This is an interesting quote: "while there may be no biological limits to the human life span, there are practical ones. In addition to luck, these include the amount of money society is willing to invest in antiaging research." As a society, we are investing too little in medical research. This barrier must be overcome by activism and education if we are to benefit from real antiaging and healthy life extension therapies.

More On No Fixed Maximum Lifespan (November 18 2003)
http://www.theledger.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20031118/NEWS/311180302/1021
The Ledger is running an article with a few more tidbits on Dr. James Vaupel's longevity data. He describes himself as "middle of the road" in terms of his predictions for increasing lifespan, but I and many others think that he is failing to take into account near future advances across the board in regenerative medicine. Regardless, his analysis - that there is no fixed maximum lifespan - should inspire us all to get out there and help the advance of medical science. If progress is faster, we live healthily for longer!

First Steps To Stem Cell Paralysis Cure (November 18 2003)
http://www.betterhumans.com/News/news.aspx?articleID=2003-11-17-7
Betterhumans reports that a human trial has reported minor success in using stem cell therapy to treat paralysis. Patients regained some feeling, which while not a cure is a far better result than other therapies have achieved. This type of stem cell therapy has been refined to show more impressive results in mice, but this is the first set of trial results for spinal cord injury in humans. Overall, this is a very important step forward in learning how to regenerate nerve damage (age-related or injury-related) in humans; CRPF staff must be very pleased right now.

Mapping Out Longevity Research (November 17 2003)
http://www.sagecrossroads.com/news_111003.cfm
From SAGE Crossroads, an article on recent attempts by the NIH to get aging researchers and gerontologists communicating more often and rowing in roughly the same direction. A proposed roadmap for research will assist in coordination between diverse groups. Modern medical research has grown so large and diversified as a field that scientists are often unaware of relevant work by other organizations or from other specializations. Better communication and organization are necessary to speed the advance of medical science.

CR Society Starts New Online Community (November 17 2003)
http://www.calorierestriction.org/modules.php?name=FAQ&myfaq=yes&id_cat=47&categories=Info+about+crcommunity+list
The CR Society, a friendly, supportive group of folks interested in calorie restriction, have started up a new "CR Community" mailing list: read the announcement and then go ahead and sign up. If you found the main CR Society communities were a little too focused on calorie restriction, facts and techniques, then this may be just the thing for you. Calorie restriction, as you might have noticed, has been showing up much more often in the press of late. This can only be a good thing, especially for companies currently investigating the underlying science.

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