Individuals who display exceptional longevity provide evidence that humans can live longer, healthier lives. Centenarians (greater than 100 years of age) provide a unique lens through which to study longevity and healthy aging as they have the capacity to delay or escape aging-related diseases such as cancer, cardiovascular disease and Alzheimer's disease, while markedly avoiding disability. Problematically, models of human aging and resilience to disease that allow for the testing of potential interventions are virtually non-existent.
In an effort to solve this issue, researchers from Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine and Boston Medical Center (BMC) have created the largest library of induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) from centenarians and their offspring in the world. iPSCs can be grown indefinitely, differentiated into any cell or tissue type in the body, and faithfully capture the genetic background of the person from whom they are created. "By creating centenarian stem cells, we hope to decipher how these individuals delay or avoid age-related diseases and develop and/or validate therapeutics in this same capacity.
This research provides a unique resource that can be used to better understand the mechanisms behind centenarian resilience and help others maximize their healthy years of life," said first author Todd Dowrey, a PhD candidate in the molecular & translational medicine department at the school. The researchers obtained and character.
