Telomeros: The clocks of life

The human species has been able to increase its life expectancy year after year, however our biology places a limit on us.And the cumulus of damage in cells product of aging prevents our body from existing indefinitely, our life time is controlled by a kind of hourglasses...How long does we have left to live ? Can we be able to cheat the clock ? Come and discover more about telomeros.

What are telomeros?

All human beings have 46 chromosomes which are arranged in 23 pairs ; In general, it can be said that the shape of the chromosomes is similar to the letter "X", the chromosome is composed of long and short arms, other important parts are the centromere (central part that joins the arms) and the telomero (extreme part of the arms).

These telomeres are sequences of repeated DNA that are located at the ends of the chromosomes as " Capuchon ”, preventing them from deteriorating or merging with other chromosomes, which would cause serious genetic problems .Telomeres play a fundamental role during the cell division , the Shortening of telomeres during this process is inevitable and limits the number of times a normal cell can replicate , approximately 50 throughout life.The minimum size that a functional telomere can have is known as the limit of Hayflick and indicates that when the cell reaches smaller sizes it will begin its death process .Also being the telomere of chromosome 3 the shortest of the whole game, it is thought that it could be the trigger of cell death.

In other words we could say that very short telomeres allow a smaller amount of divisions causing a reduced longevity and on the contrary longer telomeres involve greater longevity .When we are born there are no significant differences between the length of the telomeres of men and women, however, as aging occurs, the telomeres of women end up being longer than in men, this phenomenon is still unexplained but could be the reason why Women tend to live longer years than men.

How to repair telomeres?

The secret to a longer life lies in the length of the telomeres, then being able to control the size of the telomeres and keep them in a good size could give us more years of life, since it turns out that we are not so far from controlling the telomeres thanks to the discovery of the enzyme 'telomerase' whose function is to lengthen and maintain telomeric regions.

Telomeros: The clocks of life

Experiments in mice have demonstrated the ability to increase the life of these animals even in a 24% after a treatment in which the production of the enzyme telomerase was induced.However, the danger is latent since if the telomerase concentrations are very high, it could ac tivar the tumor cells and cause cancer since they favor the immortality of malignant cells.Then the success of this therapy focuses on being able to extend life by maintaining the telomeres without producing cancer.

Likewise, Telomerase is normally active in fetal cells and after birth it is gradually deactivated in all cells except in normal stem cells and in some cells of the immune system.On the other hand, sperm and ovules already they have long telomeres and do not have telomerase activity.

Future applications

The immediate application is to test the effectiveness of drugs telomerase inhibitors as a possible antitumor therapy, alleviate the diseases associated with aging by re-introducing telomerase into cells with short telomeres, tissue production and differentiation in vitro from adult stem cells, which also need telomerase to divide indefinitely.

Telomeros: The clocks of life

The most promising application focuses on delaying aging, a common cause that triggers the appearance of diseases as the resistance to insulin or cardiovascular diseases, the incidence of which increases with age.Then, if we treated the aging of the cells, we could prevent the appearance of these diseases .that the study of the telomere and its telomerase will bring us many surprises in the not too distant future.

If you have been interested in this article, you may want to know more about why we need DNA from a man and a woman.

Comments

What we thought we knew about Jupiter is incorrect, according to scientists

The fifth planet of our solar system gets its name from the god of ancient Rome, Jupiter, and although scientists have long been studying it, new data collected by NASA have shown that much of what we thought knowing about this planet is inaccurate .Find out what these new discoveries are going to. Scientists have obtained evidence that belies the information they handled about Jupiter Scientists have had time from studying the data collected by NASA's Juno spacecraft and thanks to them, they have discovered that practically everything they thought they knew about Jupiter's interior was wrong . According to Scott Bolton, Juno's principal investigator, has meant a bath of humility for the scientific community.»It is making us think again how giant planets work not only in our system, but in the entire galaxy « , express during a confer on May 25th. Juno, which was launched in 2011 and entered into orbit of Jupiter on July 4, 2016, is the first spacecraft that m...

The hermaphrodite of the Middle Ages with a tragic end

The lack of knowledge caused ancient societies to deeply fear everything that was different.In the Middle Ages, homosexuality and gender fluency was not something that was really discussed and for that reason, those people who left the norm ended up being hard judged.Such was the case of Rolandina Ronchaia, a hermaphrodite of the Middle Ages who suffered a painful end to be different.Discover her story. Rolandina Ronchaia , a brutally judged middle age hermaphrodite Hermaphroditism is the term used in biology to define organisms that possess both reproductive organs usually associated with both sexes : feminine and masculine.In short, they are living beings that have a mixed apparatus capable of producing male and female gametes. The term comes from the figure of Greek mythology, Hermaphrodite, a son of the adulte relation Aphrodite and Hermes .Feeling guilty for his dwarf, Aphrodite abandoned the baby on Mount Ida, where he was raised by nymphs.Already become a young man o...

10 amazing animal documentaries you can't miss

If you are passionate about the animal world, what better plan than to enjoy some popcorn while watching some of these ten animal documentaries that we have selected for you.Lions, penguins, dogs or the exciting ones and Mysterious creatures that hide under the sea.All that you can enjoy with these videos.Prepare for a marathon of animal documentaries? Content Index 10 impressive animal documentaries We have distributed these 10 animal documentaries in categories that refer to the majority of their footage dedicated to these works.In the first block we will find the most impressive facet of animals and nature.In the second block we will move to the oceans and observe their wonders.In the third, we will meet the lions closely and in the room, our beloved dogs, "man's best friends". Animals and nature in their greater splendor Let's start with tre s documentaries dedicated to animals and the planet earth, which show us the most amazing face of both, leaving...

A diet to fight cancer?

Today I would like to share with you, curious readers, the amazing story of a cancer patient who decides to fight the disease following a rigorous diet vegan .What drives him to make this "reckless" decision? What results do you get? What is this extraordinary diet that I use to fight cancer? These are the points that we will analyze next. A diet to fight cancer? The patient I am talking about is called Antonio and is originally from Calabria, a region south of Italy with a rich culinary tradition in both meat and fish, since this man is diagnosed with a metastasis in the brain in 2011, after having fought hard to overcome two other lung tumors.To begin this new battle, doctors propose radiotherapy sessions to reduce the volume of the tumor and the surrounding edema. Three months later make a check and although the result is positive , the tumor has not disappeared, so they suggest a cycle of chemotherapy.Antonio, tired of strong and aggressive treatments, r...

Scientists find a GENETIC relationship between personality and psychiatric disorders

In the fight that the scientific community has declared to the diseases, it would be an invaluable weapon to have a pathological development map of each patient, to be able to fight the diseases even before they manifest themselves.study that is being carried out on the Genetics of Personality, which is laying the groundwork so that through genetics you can predict personality and psychiatric disorders. Scientists find a GENETIC relationship between personality and disorders psychiatric According to the latest studies on the human genome, like other diseases are hereditary, mental illnesses and even some features of our personality are already predetermined.Yes, features like the kindness, the responsibility, the extroversion, the neuroticism and the openness to the experience they already have a precise genetic marker that, if present in our DNA, will make us possess this specific quality. Of course, although the genetic predisposition in the qualities of the per...

The rarest blood type of humans: Rh Null

Not a whole generation of monarchs ‘blue blood’ equates to the bearers of the Null Rh.This scarce and precious “golden blood” is considered the rarest blood type in the world: only 43 people have it! And more than making those 43 people feel 'a little more than special' it has been discovered that it is an invaluable way to save lives. The Null Rh, the rarest type of blood Rh Null is considered "universal" to donate to people with any other blood group, so their ability to save lives is enormous.At the same time, it is also highly appreciated by doctors, since it is given to patients only in extreme circumstances, and after careful consideration.For those who are carriers of the rarest blood type, a transfusion with a different blood type could be fatal, despite its 'universal' character. Currently Only 9 of the 43 people identified as Rh null are registered as active blood donors. They are distributed all over the globe, making the donation procedure...

Did you know that Abdominal Migrana exists?

You probably have already forgotten, because they are not memories that someone wants to keep from their childhood, those abdominal pains that bent you in the bed of your room and sometimes your parents did not believe, because They thought you wanted to avoid going to school.They were pains of an intensity and duration, sometimes several hours, which luckily you did not feel again when you reach youth and that today begin to be known as abdominal migraine. Did you know that Abdominal Migrana exists? Have you heard about the abdominal migraine? Probably not, but you should not feel guilty about it, because it is a term of recent use that does not fully enjoy the approval of the medical union .Strictly speaking, a migrant is a strong and prolonged pain head, which can be total or partial and almost completely rendered useless to the affected person; but some doctors, especially pediatricians, consider that the term could be extended from the neurological condition to other pains...

5 things that your voice "says" about you

Our voice reflects data about our personality, our mood and our health.Our interlocutors infer many things of tone or musicality.Let's know 5 things that your voice «says» of you . 5 things that your voice «says» about you 1.If you are in love in a recent relationship. Our tone of voice changes when we are in love and our relationship is less than one year old.In a study at Albright College, Pennsylvania, volunteers were presented with several telephone conversations to identify who had a relationship of friendship and those of a recent couple .Everyone clearly identified it.Apparently the women lower the tone and the men raise it . 2.If you have a low tone, you will seem more reliable and have more power. The most serious tones seem to be almost a guarantee of success .According to a study by Duke University, managers with the tone of More serious voice had better positions and earned more money than those of higher tones.In the political field candidates with mo...

5 animals with curious mating rites

In Science Daily Online we love animals and we have presented articles talking about octopus or killer whales, for example.On this occasion we want to look at the curious courtship rites of 5 animals.All species have rituals to "conquer" their partners and get to mating and many of them are unique.We have chosen the hedgehog, the garter snake, the bird of the bower, the porcupine and the elephant to investigate their life loving. The porcupine The female porcupine is only receptive to mating for 12 hours a year! The male has to try Let's see if it's time. It stands on its hind legs and walks towards it, when it is relatively close (approximately 2 meters) throws a stream of urine . The female, wet, if she is not receptive she will scream and try to get rid of the urine.If she is willing, she will stand up like him, showing her belly , and proceed to mating.Be careful not to pinch the fists Naturally. The bird of the emparrado The bird of the...

ATTENTION! 5 Symptoms of suicide

One of the worst situations in which a person can find himself is faced with the suicide of a family member or a loved one .The question of whether it could have been asked something is inevitable, and the feeling of failure, often insufferable.The AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF SUICIDOLOGY and the SAVE (Suicide awareness Voices of Education) have developed studies from which 5 attitudes can be extracted that make one suspect that a person needs medical help, since you are thinking about taking your own life .We will not always find symptoms, but it should be taken into account. ATTENTION! 5 Symptoms of suicide 1.Authorize yourself Not everyone who self-injures (cuts, blows...) is a potential suicidal , but if is a symptom that should alarm us and lead us to ask for help for this person, because in many cases it is a prelude to suicide. Also add other self-destructive behaviors, such as the excessive intake of alcohol or drugs . 2.Sensation of loss Another sy...

Science Daily Online

Search This Blog