Scientists from the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) have found a way to tweak proteins that control cellular activity levels. That means they were able to turn up and down levels in roundworm that prolongs its lifespan.
In that sense, drugs could be designed to combat age-related problems and increase the lifespan of humans.
The enzyme in roundworms that the scientists tweaked is responsible for converting the sugar into energy when the cellular level is low, in which they found that it can be controlled. Like roundworms, humans also have these proteins, which means that there is a possibility of developing longevity-promoting drugs.
Anti-aging Proteins in Roundworms
One of the most commonly used in lab testing, the Korean scientists used the roundworm Caenorhabditis elegans (C. elegans) for their study, published in Science Advances.
C. elegans experienced a boost in its lifespan when the scientists altered a couple of proteins responsible for monitoring the cellular energy levels.
These proteins are the VRK-1 and AMPK, and both work in tandem in roundworm cells. VRK-1's job is to tell AMPK to stick a phosphate molecule on it. AMPK's role then is to monitor the energy levels in cells when it is running low.
In short, VRK-1 controls AMPK, and AMPK controls the cellular energy levels. The researchers were able to turn up and down the cellular activity that tells it to produce VRK-1 protein through various biological research tools, such as introducing foreign genes into the roundworm.
Pretty much, this gene remained unchanged over the course of evolution, which is why most complex organisms, including humans, have it.
According to lead author Sang-soon Park, he and his colleagues successfully increased the production of VRK-1 protein that boosts the lifespan of roundworms. They found that its activity increased when the worm has low cellular energy levels.
Simply saying, there is reduced mitochondrial respiration, and a decline in its function are associated with age-related illness. Mitochondria is the powerhouse of a cell.
However, the mild inhibition of mitochondrial respiration has shown to promote a longer lifespan for other species like flies and mammals.
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Developing Drugs to Combat Age-Related Illness
When Park and his colleagues tried tweaking the same protein in humans, they found that they could also replicate the same process that occurs in roundworms.
Moreover, Professor Seung-Jae V. Lee, one of the researchers, explained that their research raises a very intriguing possibility that VRK-1 can also increase human lifespan. Perhaps drugs that promote longevity can be developed to alter the activity of VRK-1.
In that way, humans will be able to combat age-related illnesses that involve the disruption of chemical reactions in the body and diseases of the mitochondria.
But the researchers advise conducting more research to better understanding the workings of VRK-1 before developing longevity drugs. They added that they still need to figure out the exact mechanics of how AMPK controls energy levels in cells.
Read More: Are Scientists Close to Discovering a Way to Delay Aging?
