Stress Tests For Longevity Genes

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How do scientists discover longevity-related genes? An article from Betterhumans explains how looking for genes affected by environmental stress can uncover mechanisms relating to longevity. "Using a gene-screening technique to find genes regulated by heat, oxidants and starvation, researcher Seymour Benzer and colleagues at the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, California found 13 candidate longevity genes and tweaked two to increase the lifespan of fruit flies." This sort of work probably has similar potential to that on calorie restriction mimetic drugs. Even if it doesn't, there is no such thing as useless knowledge in biochemistry - everything we learn helps to illuminate other parts of the puzzle.

Link: http://www.betterhumans.com/News/news.aspx?articleID=2004-08-09-3