Telomerase Activation
An enzyme called telomerase can slow, stop or even reverse the telomere
shortening that happens as we age.5,6 The
amount of telomerase in our bodies declines as we get older.4
In 2009, the Nobel Prize for Physiology/Medicine was awarded to three
scientists who discovered how telomerase impacts telomere length. Their work
explained how the ends of DNA strands are protected by telomeres, and that
telomeres are built by telomerase.7 Exposing
human cells to telomerase slows cell aging and allows cells to begin copying
again.6 Activating telomerase can:
- Address telomere shortening and cell aging
- Help cells live longer and continue to function properly
-
Make old cells function as they did when they were younger (by changing gene
expression to a younger phenotype)
There are other things we can do that might help restore telomere length or at
least slow the loss of telomere length: reduce stress, stop smoking, lose
weight, exercise more and eat a healthier diet.2,8,9
Exposing human cells to telomerase slows cell aging and
allows cells to begin copying again6
References
-
Armanios M, Blackburn EH. The telomere syndromes. Nature Reviews
Genetics. 2012;13:693–704.
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Blackburn EH, Epel ES. Comment: Too toxic to ignore. Nature.
2012;490:169–171.
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Aubert G, Lansdorp PM. Telomeres and aging. Physiological Reviews.
2008;88:557–579.
-
Eisenberg DTA. An evolutionary review of human telomere biology: the
thrifty telomere hypothesis and notes on potential adaptive paternal
effects. American Journal of Human Biology. 2011;23:149–167.
-
Oeseburg H, et al. Telomere biology in healthy aging and disease.
Pflügers Archiv – European Journal of Physiology.
2010;459:259–268.
-
Sahin E, DePinho RA. Linking functional decline of telomeres,
mitochondria and stem cells during ageing. Nature.
2010;464:520–528.
-
Press release: The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 2009.
Nobelprize.org. Available online at:
http://www.nobelprize.org…press.html. Accessed October 8, 2013.
-
Ornish D. Effect of comprehensive lifestyle changes on telomerase
activity and telomere length in men with biopsy–proven
low–risk prostate cancer: 5–year follow–up of a
descriptive pilot study. The Lancet Oncology.
2013;14(11):1112–1120.
-
Valdes AM, et al. Obesity, cigarette smoking, and telomere length in
women. The Lancet. 2005;366(964)662–664.