The aging process, and the gray hair
and wrinkles that go along with it, may result in part from genetic mutations
that occur as the cell-division process begins to break down over time,
according to a report.
A team of researchers led by Drs. Richard A. Lerner and Peter G. Schultz, of
The Scripps Research Institute in La Jolla, California, collected cells from
four groups of people: the young, the middle-aged, the elderly, and people with
Hutchinson-Gilford progeria, a rare hereditary condition that causes the body to
age prematurely. Using a relatively new technology called a DNA microarray, the
investigators were able to look at more than 6,000 genes at once and to see
which ones were active in each age group.
In this analysis, they identified 61 genes that changed with age. A
substantial proportion of these genes were ones involved in the cell-division
process. As these changes occur, chromosomes in the cells could become unstable,
which might lead to signs of age-related medical problems, including
osteoporosis, Alzheimer's disease and arthritis, the authors report.
In addition, there were also changes in genes involved in the production of
collagen and other proteins that help maintain skin. Other changing genes
included ones involved in inflammation, which has been linked to a number of
age-related ills, such as heart disease.
