Friday, July 20, 2007

Cancer-proof mice live longer

An extra copy of a tumour-killing gene helps mice to stay young.

Ewen Callaway

A protein known to keep cancer at bay now also looks to be a fountain of youth. Mice with an extra copy of the tumour-killing gene that pumps out this protein live longer than those with just one copy, and are better at combating the cell damage that causes ageing.

The finding hints that a drug designed to boost the tumour suppressor, called p53, could work as an anti-ageing treatment for people, says Manuel Serrano, a biologist at Spanish National Cancer Research Centre in Madrid. Serrano's team publish their work in this week's Nature.

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