Researchers from the Institute of Regenerative Medicine explain that they are able to rejuvenate certain stem cells.
What if we reprogrammed stem cells to make them younger? The idea seems too eccentric to be true, and yet, researchers from the Institute of Regenerative Medicine (in Montpellier), have succeeded, as France Info points out.
The theory of cell rejuvenation was born with a Japanese professor, Mr. Yamanaka, who “converted” cells to make embryonic stem cells, explains scientist Jean-Marc Lemaître.
As a reminder, embryonic stem cells are normally “derived from the embryo at a very early stage of its development”,reminds Inserm. They therefore have nothing to do with aging cells, quite the contrary… They have two primordial capacities: they are able to multiply endlessly (they self-renew), and they are the ones who give “birth to all types of cells in the body” (they are said to be pluripotent).
Plus 30% healthy life (in mice)
Concretely, the Montpellier scientists have managed to rejuvenate skin cells. They have in fact collected skin samples from centenariansbefore regenerating them: for the first time in 2011, researchers proved that cellular aging could be reversed.
Tests have been carried out on mice using a combination of genes believed to cause rejuvenation. The researchers believe that mice that had access to this cocktail of genes in small doses during their lifetime gained 30% life expectancy in good health. “And if we do just one reprogramming early in life, we still gain 15% of life in good health with an improvement in physiological functions. We delay or even eliminate age-related pathologies,” he explains. it with France Info. Case to follow so that it benefits humans!
Sources: France Info, Inserm.
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