Aging and Oxidative Stress
March 5th, 2009Dr Hekimi and colleague Jeremy Van Raamsdonk of McGill University studied mutant worms after they had progressively disabled five genes responsible for detoxifying ROS. Their results call into question the theory that oxidative stress causes aging. They found that reducing mitochondrial activity by damaging it with ROS did not reduce the life span of worms, and in one case made the worms live longer. While the authors refer to aging, it appears they studied longevity. The authors do not appear to have answered questions about the worms’ health and performance after they were damaged. This is perhaps the most important component of aging. It would be interesting to know if these damaged worms remained healthy or just lived as long (or longer) than their undamaged counterparts.
Since the mitochondria (the powerhouse of the cell) was damaged in the McGill study, the worms may have been alive but not as healthy as they otherwise would have been. Hopefully further study will investigate this and the possibility that damaging mitochondrial function resulted in lower oxygen metabolism and, as a result, actually decreased the kind of damage that would shorten the worm’s life. You may also be interested in Oxygen Ironey* and Healthy Aging and Anti Aging
Health and vitality during later stages of life is a primary reason for people to use Eng3’s Activated Air. Our focus is on the quality of life – helping people stay active, alert and vital as they age.