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Counteracting the telomere shrinking process is the enzyme, telomerase, that uniquely holds the key to delaying or even reversing the cellular aging process. Telomerase offsets cellular aging by lengthening the telomeres, adding back lost DNA repeats to add time onto the molecular clock countdown, effectively extending the lifespan of the cell. Telomerase lengthens telomeres by repeatedly synthesizing very short DNA repeats of six nucleotides — the building blocks of DNA — with the sequence "GGTTAG" onto the chromosome ends from an RNA template located within the enzyme itself. However, the activity of the telomerase enzyme is insufficient to completely restore the lost telomeric DNA repeats, nor to stop cellular aging.
With the aid of 3D printing and electrospinning, a team of bioengineers at the Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine, a research institute in North Carolina led by Anthony Atala, has been growing viable tissue and organs for patients. While many of these 3D-printed organs remain in the research stage, some should be ready for clinical testing within a year or two.
For more than 25 years, Atala has been working on generating tissue cells in the lab. From fingers and ears to kidneys and hearts, his team can now create 40 different organ and tissue structures.
In 2018, 612,846 missing persons cases were entered into the National Crime Information Center records, though on any given day, a smaller number are active.
On the last day of 2018, the NCIC reports 85,459 cases were active.
Of all those cases, most are adults. Thirty-five percent are under 18, and 45% are under 21 — which is sometimes substituted as the cutoff age for an endangered person still be classified as a minor.
So where are all of those "lesser" folks, like us, who are now "immortal" lab rats?
So where are all of those "lesser" folks, like us, who are now "immortal" lab rats?
originally posted by: Antimony
a reply to: Mantiss2021
Maybe I should have used the phrase "live forever" instead of immortality, because even with telomere extension and organ transplant, the same things that kill us (gunshot, whatever) will still kill them. But if they can avoid that type of injury, their life would be extended perhaps indefinitely.
originally posted by: Emit1
originally posted by: Antimony
telomere extension
this looked promising a quarter century ago, how they doing with it
In the NIH study, scientists administered the synthetic sex hormone, danazol, to a small group of participants with rare telomere disorders and bone marrow failure in an effort to slow their rapid telomere loss. In addition to slowing telomere loss, the drug unexpectedly appeared to elongate telomeres in almost all study participants. The treatment also improved blood counts in most study participants, and some who were dependent on blood transfusions no longer required them. In fact, when the participants stopped taking danazol, their telomeres shortened again.
originally posted by: Antimony
When they stopped taking the danazol, their telomeres shortened again.