Chinese scientists develop gene therapy which could delay ageing
Skip to main content
  • Home
  • Economy
  • Stocks
  • Analysis
  • World+Biz
  • Sports
  • Splash
  • Features
  • Videos
  • Long Read
  • Games
  • Epaper
  • More
    • COVID-19
    • Bangladesh
    • Infograph
    • Interviews
    • Offbeat
    • Thoughts
    • Podcast
    • Quiz
    • Tech
    • Subscribe
    • Archive
    • Trial By Trivia
    • Magazine
    • Supplement
  • বাংলা
The Business Standard
FRIDAY, MAY 20, 2022
FRIDAY, MAY 20, 2022
  • Home
  • Economy
  • Stocks
  • Analysis
  • World+Biz
  • Sports
  • Splash
  • Features
  • Videos
  • Long Read
  • Games
  • Epaper
  • More
    • COVID-19
    • Bangladesh
    • Infograph
    • Interviews
    • Offbeat
    • Thoughts
    • Podcast
    • Quiz
    • Tech
    • Subscribe
    • Archive
    • Trial By Trivia
    • Magazine
    • Supplement
  • বাংলা
Chinese scientists develop gene therapy which could delay ageing

Science

Reuters
20 January, 2021, 12:35 pm
Last modified: 20 January, 2021, 12:43 pm

Related News

  • Oil steady as economic worries offset possible China demand rise
  • China says it wants to expand BRICS bloc of emerging economies
  • China to buy Russian oil for strategic reserves
  • US charges a American, four Chinese officials with spying
  • China relaxes some Covid test rules for US, other travellers

Chinese scientists develop gene therapy which could delay ageing

The method involves inactivating a gene called kat7 which the scientists found to be a key contributor to cellular ageing

Reuters
20 January, 2021, 12:35 pm
Last modified: 20 January, 2021, 12:43 pm
Dr. Shuhui Sun performs a step of histological staining of mouse liver for pathological analysis in the Aging and Regeneration lab at the Institute for Stem Cell and Regeneration of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) in Beijing, China, January 12, 2021. REUTERS/Tingshu Wang
Dr. Shuhui Sun performs a step of histological staining of mouse liver for pathological analysis in the Aging and Regeneration lab at the Institute for Stem Cell and Regeneration of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) in Beijing, China, January 12, 2021. REUTERS/Tingshu Wang

Scientists in Beijing have developed a new gene therapy which can reverse some of the effects of ageing in mice and extend their lifespans, findings which may one day contribute to similar treatment for humans.

The method, detailed in a paper in the Science Translational Medicine journal earlier this month, involves inactivating a gene called kat7 which the scientists found to be a key contributor to cellular ageing.

The specific therapy they used and the results were a world first, said co-supervisor of the project Professor Qu Jing, 40, a specialist in ageing and regenerative medicine from the Institute of Zoology at the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS).

"These mice show after 6-8 months overall improved appearance and grip strength and most importantly they have extended lifespan for about 25%," Qu said.

The team of biologists from different CAS departments used the CRISPR/Cas9 method to screen thousands of genes for those which were particularly strong drivers of cellular senescence, the term used to describe cellular ageing.

They identified 100 genes out of around 10,000, and kat7 was the most efficient at contributing to senescence in cells, Qu said.

Kat7 is one of tens of thousands of genes found in the cells of mammals. The researchers inactivated it in the livers of the mice using a method called a lentiviral vector.

"We just tested the function of the gene in different kinds of cell types, in the human stem cell, the mesenchymal progenitor cells, in the human liver cell and the mouse liver cell and for all of these cells we didn't see any detectable cellular toxicity. And for the mice, we also didn't see any side effect yet."

Despite this, the method is a long way from being ready for human trials, Qu said.

"It's still definitely necessary to test the function of kat7 in other cell types of humans and other organs of mice and in the other pre-clinical animals before we use the strategy for human ageing or other health conditions," she said.

Qu said she hopes to be able to test the method on primates next, but it would require a lot of funding and much more research first.

"In the end, we hope that we can find a way to delay ageing even by a very minor percentage...in the future."

Top News / World+Biz

Gene Therapy / Chinese scientists / china / sign of ageing

Comments

While most comments will be posted if they are on-topic and not abusive, moderation decisions are subjective. Published comments are readers’ own views and The Business Standard does not endorse any of the readers’ comments.

Top Stories

  • US growth seen outpacing China’s for first time since 1976
    US growth seen outpacing China’s for first time since 1976
  • BNP misinterpreting PM's comment over Padma Bridge: Quader
    BNP misinterpreting PM's comment over Padma Bridge: Quader
  • Students suffer over costlier food at public university canteens
    Students suffer over costlier food at public university canteens

MOST VIEWED

  • Photo: AFP
    End of the line nears for NASA InSight Mars lander
  • This is the first image of Sagittarius A* (or Sgr A* for short), the supermassive black hole at the center of our galaxy. It was captured by the Event Horizon Telescope (EHT), an array which linked together radio observatories across the planet to form a single "Earth-sized" virtual telescope. The new view captures light bent by the powerful gravity of the black hole, which is four million times more massive than our Sun. EHT Collaboration/National Science Foundation/Handout via REUTERS
    Scientists unveil image of 'gentle giant' black hole at Milky Way's center
  • Picture: Courtesy
    Rice researchers identify adapted breeding lines for Bangladesh ecosystems
  • This combination of images provided by NASA shows part of the Large Magellanic Cloud, a small satellite galaxy of the Milky Way, seen by the retired Spitzer Space Telescope, left, and the new James Webb Space Telescope.(NASA via AP)
    NASA shares stunning images of neighbouring galaxy using new space telescope
  • This artist?s concept released October 30, 2017 shows a black hole with an accretion disk - a flat structure of material orbiting the black hole ? and a jet of hot gas, called plasma. NASA/JPL-Caltech/Handout via REUTERS
    Black hole hunters cast gaze at center of the Milky Way galaxy
  • Microbe-based faux beef could save forests, slash CO2
    Microbe-based faux beef could save forests, slash CO2

Related News

  • Oil steady as economic worries offset possible China demand rise
  • China says it wants to expand BRICS bloc of emerging economies
  • China to buy Russian oil for strategic reserves
  • US charges a American, four Chinese officials with spying
  • China relaxes some Covid test rules for US, other travellers

Features

Mohammad (Mejbah) Mejbahuddin, Former Senior Secretary, Economic Relations Division (ERD), Ministry of Finance, Government of Bangladesh. TBS Sketch

‘No project is being delayed too long at the moment’

5h | Panorama
Dr Shamsul Hoque, Professor, Civil Engineering, BUET. TBS Sketch

‘Planning commission only in the name, there are no planners’ 

5h | Panorama
Masrur Reaz. TBS Sketch

‘To ensure accountability, contract financing should be based on ‘performance based payments’

5h | Panorama
Professor Mustafizur Rahman. Illustration: TBS

Project delays and escalating costs are driven by frequent revisions and lack of good governance

8h | Panorama

More Videos from TBS

Ways to retain body fragrance

Ways to retain body fragrance

6h | Videos
Gazipur restaurant that serves 150 food items

Gazipur restaurant that serves 150 food items

10h | Videos
How to prepare for a job

How to prepare for a job

11h | Videos
Putin's strategies to face Nato

Putin's strategies to face Nato

23h | Videos

Most Read

1
Tk100 for bike, Tk2,400 for bus to cross Padma Bridge
Bangladesh

Tk100 for bike, Tk2,400 for bus to cross Padma Bridge

2
Representative Photo: Pixabay.
Bangladesh

Microplastics found in 5 local sugar brands

3
Mushfiq Mobarak. Photo: Noor-A-Alam
Panorama

Meet the Yale professor who anchors his research in Bangladesh and scales up interventions globally

4
A packet of US five-dollar bills is inspected at the Bureau of Engraving and Printing in Washington March 26, 2015. REUTERS/Gary Cameron
Banking

Dollar hits Tk100 mark in open market

5
The story of Bangladesh becoming a major bicycle exporter
Industry

The story of Bangladesh becoming a major bicycle exporter

6
PK Halder: How a scamster rose from humble beginnings to a Tk11,000cr empire
Crime

PK Halder: How a scamster rose from humble beginnings to a Tk11,000cr empire

The Business Standard
Top
  • Home
  • Entertainment
  • Sports
  • About Us
  • Bangladesh
  • International
  • Privacy Policy
  • Comment Policy
  • Contact Us
  • Economy
  • Sitemap
  • RSS

Contact Us

The Business Standard

Main Office -4/A, Eskaton Garden, Dhaka- 1000

Phone: +8801847 416158 - 59

Send Opinion articles to - oped.tbs@gmail.com

For advertisement- sales@tbsnews.net

Copyright © 2022 THE BUSINESS STANDARD All rights reserved. Technical Partner: RSI Lab