Led by anti-aging expert David Sinclair, a professor of genetics at Harvard Medical School and codirector of the Paul F. Glenn Center for Biology of Aging Research, a groundbreaking study recently published in the journal Cell has shown that aging is not the result of genetic mutations that damage our DNA, but rather a loss of information caused by the cell's inability to read its original DNA correctly. Through a process called inducible changes to the epigenome (ICE), the team was able to rapidly age mice to look and act twice their age, and then reverse the process using a mixture of three or four “Yamanaka factors”. This process was used to restore the brain, muscle and kidney cells of mice to much younger levels, and Sinclair is currently testing the genetic reset in primates, with the goal of eventually conducting clinical trials in humans.
When it comes to staving off the effects of aging, Sinclair recommends focusing on healthy behaviors such as eating plants, exercising, getting enough sleep and maintaining a good social group. Ultimately, these findings demonstrate that we can use the right interventions and lifestyle choices to make the most of our time here on earth.