Buildup of damaged DNA in cells dr...( PITTSBURGH Dec. 20 The accumulation ...)

PITTSBURGH, Dec. 20 The accumulation of genetic damage in our cells is a major contributor to how we age, according to a study being published today in the journal Nature by an international group of researchers. The study found that mice completely lacking a critical gene for repairing damaged DNA grow old rapidly and have physical, genetic and hormonal profiles very similar to mice that grow old naturally. Furthermore, the premature aging symptoms of the mice led to the discovery of a new type of human progeria, a rare inherited disease in which affected individuals age rapidly and die prematurely.

"These progeroid mice, even though they do not live very long, have remarkably similar characteristics to normal old mice, from their physical symptoms, to their metabolic and hormonal changes and pathology, right down to the level of similar changes in gene expression," said corresponding author Jan Hoeijmakers, Ph.D., head of the department of genetics at the Erasmus Medical Center in Rotterdam, Netherlands. "This provides strong evidence that failure to repair DNA damage promotes aging a finding that was not entirely unexpected since DNA damage was already known to cause cancer. However, it shows how important it is to repair damage that is constantly inflicted upon our genes, even through the simple act of breathing."

The study found that a key similarity between the progeria-like, or progeroid, mice and naturally old mice is the suppression of genes that control metabolic pathways promoting growth, including those controlled by growth hormone. How growth hormone pathways are suppressed is not known, but this response appears to have evolved to protect against stress caused by DNA damage or the wear-and-tear of normal living. The authors speculate that this stress response allows each of us to live as long and as healthy a life as possible despite the accumulation of genetic damage as we age.

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Contact: Jim Swyers
SwyersJP@upmc.edu
412-647-3555
University of Pittsburgh Medical Center
20-Dec-2006