Optimal Being

Supplementation with spermidine may slow down cardiovascular aging. This is suggested by a German animal study, published in GeroScience, in which researchers gave mice a fairly high dose of spermidine. Study German molecular scientists from Hanover Medical School gave middle-aged to elderly mice spermidine via their drinking water every day for 6 months. A control group was given drinking water without any additives. After 6 months of supplementation, the researchers compared both groups of mice with each other - and with a group of relatively young mice. Results Old mice lose some of their fur, but spermidine supplementation counteracted this. In the heart muscle of older mice in the control group, the researchers found signs of mild and severe degeneration due to aging. However, spermidine supplementation reduced the signs of severe degeneration. At the molecular level, aging leads to a decrease in the telomeres in the DNA of the cells. The more intense aging processes, the faster t...

  Prof Georgina Ellison-Hughes: targeting cell senescence using senolytics can rejuvenate the aged heart’s regenerative capacity. Speaking at the  Longevity Leaders  conference earlier this year, King’s College London Professor Georgina Ellison-Hughes shared a fascinating insight into her work to establish the adult heart as a self-renewing organ with regenerative capacity. Longevity.Technology: The heart is generally considered a “post-mitotic” organ, or one without regenerative capacity. As we age and encounter chronic disease, senescent cells accumulate in the heart, just as they do in other tissues and organs. Ellison-Hughes’ work has shown that cellular senescence may impact the efficacy of regenerative therapies, and that senolytics have the potential to rejuvenate the heart’s capacity to regenerate. We caught up with the professor to learn more. Cellular senescence  is one of the nine  hallmarks of aging . It occurs when our cells stop reproducing and ent...