Researchers at a prestigious medical school in New York have discovered that certain characteristics of a cell indicate its lifespan and present solutions that promote cellular rejuvenation.
Advances in research are becoming more and more notable, and as time goes by, specialization, machinery and scientists themselves have taken a step forward, as is the case with Artificial Intelligence, the possible vaccine against cancer or the discovery of liquid water on Mars.
However, in the field of genetics and cellular analysis, surprising results have been found. In relation to the so-called “mortality timer “, which analyzes cells and, based on the characteristics of their different stages, determines their life cycle.
What is this “mortality timer”?
A recent study by Weill Cornell Medicine researchers has provided an interesting clue about how we might be able to slow down cellular aging: It all seems to be related to the size of the nucleolus , a small structure inside the cell nucleus. This finding, based on research in yeast (a fungus-like organism surprisingly similar to humans in many cellular aspects), was published on November 25 in the journal Nature Aging .
The discovery not only opens the door to possible treatments to extend human life , but could also help us better understand how much time a cell has left before it dies . According to experts, this type of research could give us a new way to combat age-related diseases such as cancer, heart problems and neurodegenerative diseases.
“ The key is to understand how aging is the biggest risk factor for these diseases , ” explains Dr. Jessica Tyler , professor of pathology and laboratory medicine at Weill Cornell Medicine. “ Rather than treating each disease separately, it would be more effective to find a treatment or supplement that delays aging and prevents the molecular damage that causes them .”
The nucleolus , a small structure inside a cell, plays a crucial role in protein production . It’s where ribosomal DNA (rDNA) is found, which is critical for making the proteins our bodies need. But here’s the problem: rDNA is especially vulnerable to damage because of its repetitive nature, making it difficult to repair. If it’s not repaired properly , the damage can cause chromosome disruption, accelerating cellular aging and associated diseases .
This study could be the first step towards finding new ways to keep our cells young for longer.
From yeast to worms to humans, it’s been observed that nucleoli — those tiny structures inside our cells — tend to expand with age . However, anti-aging strategies like calorie restriction — that is, eating less — seem to have the opposite effect: They keep nucleoli smaller . “Calorie restriction has many effects, but no one knows exactly how it helps prolong life,” explains Dr. Tyler.
Dr. Tyler, along with senior author J. Ignacio Gutierrez, a researcher on the study, hypothesized that keeping nucleoli small might be a way to slow aging . To test this idea, they created an artificial method of attaching ribosomal DNA (rDNA) to the membrane surrounding the cell nucleus in yeast, allowing them to control when the nucleolus remained anchored and when it was not. “ What was interesting about our system was that we were able to isolate nucleolus size from other effects of anti-aging strategies,” says Dr. Gutierrez.
The results were surprising, since when the researchers managed to keep the nucleolus compact, the aging of the cells was delayed in a similar way to the effects of caloric restriction. This finding could open new doors in the search for treatments that slow down cellular aging.
Interestingly, the researchers found that nucleoli do not expand steadily throughout the life of the cells. For most of the yeast’s life, nucleoli remained small , but once they reached a certain size, they began to grow rapidly. This change caused the nucleoli to expand to a much larger size. After reaching this point, the cells only managed to survive, on average, five more cell divisions .
“When we saw that it wasn’t a linear increase in size, we knew something very important was going on ,” said Dr. Gutierrez . Ultimately, reaching that size threshold in the nucleolus appears to act as a “ mortality timer ,” marking the beginning of the final moments in a cell’s life.
Possible application of this finding
Researchers now plan to study how the size of the nucleolus influences the aging of human stem cells . Stem cells are unique in that they have the ability to replace other cells when they die . However, over time, stem cells lose the ability to divide. So scientists hope that what they learn in this study could help make stem cells live longer and continue to function efficiently.
Author: Camilo Carmona
Created: 12.01.2025 08:00
Last updated: 12.01.2025 08:00
Source: Nature – the Reason
Photo: Pixabay
