Monthly focus

Extending life

01 August 2014

Microscopic mitochondria in our cells could be manipulated to help us live for longer. Image: Inserm/U781

Bats live for longer than their body size suggests, up to twenty times longer. In August, we hear how profiling their DNA is giving researchers clues about how to extend human life.

It’s part of a special focus on ageing where we learn how manipulating mitochondria, the microscopic power houses in our cells, could help us live for longer, and find out how gene damage inherited from our grandparents can affect the way we age.

We also learn about the researchers who are making vaccines that turn our immune systems against proteins caused by diseases like Alzheimer’s, and find out about the smart mirrors that can warn doctors if an elderly person isn’t feeling right.

‘Smart’ health systems turn household devices, such as TVs and mirrors, into information panels that help assess the state of your health. Image: Shutterstock

health | ict

20 August 2014

Could a smart mirror save your life?

Looking in the mirror in the morning can help us assess when we are under the weather. Now researchers are using modern technology to capture information about physical appearance to assess the state of health of elderly people.

Mitochondria could also hold the key to identifying the causes of currently incurable diseases such as Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s. © Shutterstock

health

18 August 2014

The microscopic structures that could hold the key to a longer, healthier life

Scientists have increased the lifespan of fruit flies by genetically manipulating microscopic structures in their cells, a technique that might help researchers find the key to longer life in humans.

$AGELESS project researchers are following five colonies of greater mouse-eared bats in northern France. Image: Photothèque Bretagne Vivante SEPNB\ Olivier Farcy$

health

04 August 2014

Age-defying bats could help us live longer

Researchers are studying the DNA of bats in order to shed light on why they age so slowly - something which could help uncover ways to reverse the ageing process.

Researchers at biotech company AFFiRiS are making therapeutic vaccines which target proteins associated with disease. Image courtesy of AFFiRiS

health

01 August 2014

Vaccines to take on Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s

Scientists have worked out how to make our immune systems turn against proteins linked to diseases like Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s, offering the possibility of stopping and even reversing the effects of these devastating conditions.

More info

EU policy review on ageing in Europe

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Image credit - anncapictures/Pixabay, licenced under Pixabay licence

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Image credit - Yasunori Takeda et al/Wikimedia, licenced under CC BY 4.0

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Vaccines can train our innate immune system. Scientists are now studying whether a TB vaccine confers protection against Covid-19. Image credit - Agência Brasília/Flickr, licenced under CC BY 2.0

Q&A: How vaccines can strengthen immune response beyond a specific disease

Live vaccines can give health effects beyond just protecting us from a specific disease and may even help us combat other infections such as Covid-19, according to Christine Stabell Benn, a professor in global health at the University of Southern Denmark.

Some 95% of people have a gene variant that affects their response to at least one drug. Image credit - Banc d'Imatges Infermeres/CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

The genetics of side-effects

Henk-Jan Guchelaar knows all too well the serious problems that the side-effects of medication can cause. As a professor of clinical pharmacy at the University of Leiden in the Netherlands, he has spent the last two decades trying to get the link between medicine and our genes recognised more widely.

Extending life