Hungry mice reveal the secrets of eternal youth
4 March 2005
Rodents and monkeys appear to live longer and healthier when their food is restricted, but nobody really understands why. Now, scientists have discovered that starved mice produce high levels of an anti-ageing protein. Can hunger halt the march of time? Antenna investigates.
This work was published in Nature on 3 March 2005.
A protein called SIRT1 delays ageing in yeast, worms and flies.
Scientists restricted the amount of food fed to mice, then looked at the amount of SIRT1 in their livers. They found that the mice made more of the anti-ageing protein when they were hungry than when they were well fed.
'We think that SIRT1 is a sensor for food deprivation. By activating another protein it maintains constant blood glucose levels, as the brain mainly needs this fuel.'
Pere Puigserver, cell biologist, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, USA
Pere Puigserver, cell biologist, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, USA
Pere Puigserver, cell biologist, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, USA
Image: Pere Puigserver
Why is this research a big deal? This is the first time that the SIRT1 protein has been linked to hunger and the ageing process in mice. The effect had been seen before in yeast, worms and flies, but mice are much more closely related to humans.
'Our work has important implications in the field of ageing - that it is delayed by caloric restriction.'
Pere Puigserver
Pere Puigserver
Because SIRT1 affects blood sugar levels, this research could also help research into diabetes, a condition that affects over a million people in the UK.
The news will be of interest to followers of 'caloric restriction' diets. They believe that eating a third less food than normal can dramatically improve your health and lifespan, as long as the food you do eat is highly nutritious.
