For the first time a person underwent an operation to change the aging genes
Last reviewed: 23.04.2024
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Specialists of BioViva Inc. From the United States conducted a unique operation, during which the aging genes were modified.
The new technique consists in carrying out gene therapy at the cellular level, during the operation a modified gene is introduced into the cell of the patient, and further surgery is not required.
The head of BioViva, Elizabeth Parrish, during the meeting of the academic council told that intermediate conclusions about the operation can be made in a few months, the final results the research group plans to report in about a year.
For the first 8 years, the patient who underwent a unique operation will be under the supervision of the company's specialists.
According to researchers from BioViva, the aging of the human body was not considered by any specialist as a disease, the process of cell destruction was considered irreversible and inevitable. But early cell wear leads to such morphological changes as graying, muscle weakness, memory loss, and also provokes such diseases as Alzheimer's, cancerous tumors, heart failure. However, such processes can begin already at a fairly young age.
Each year, research centers spend millions of dollars on the study of age-related dementia, brain disorders, Parkinson's, etc. All these diseases have a direct relationship with the natural wear of cells, so the researchers at BioViva decided not to treat the consequences, but to eliminate the cause of such age changes.
Further work in the field of genetic engineering will be continued by specialists from different BioViva clinics, which are located not only in the US but also outside it.
It should be noted that earlier such studies consisted of transplanting and studying the restoring capacity of stem cells. One of the latest works of researchers from Germany showed that in stem cells there is a molecular switch that triggers the aging of the body.
Also at Harvard University, researchers found a special protein that triggers the aging of cells.
Scientists know that the aging process can affect not only the whole organism, but also individual cells (due to frequent divisions, under the influence of external factors, etc.). Different processes can slow down cellular exchange, block division, and then lead to cell death. The process of cell renewal is natural, it is thanks to this organism that it remains young for longer.
But there is a renewal of cells is disrupted, resulting in the development of various diseases (Alzheimer's, cancerous tumors, etc.).
Studying the process of cell aging, Harvard specialists discovered the protein GATA4, which affects the work of other proteins, as well as genes. As studies have shown with the wrong process of protein cleavage (various factors can provoke), GATA4 accumulates in cells and causes an accelerated aging process.
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