Forget everything
Geneticists have confirmed the ability of embryo cells to "reset" their biological age
Sergey Vasiliev, Naked Science
Over time, the body ages every cell. There is a shortening of the end sections of chromosomes, a mass of chemical labels – epigenetic modifications - accumulates in DNA. Different sets of these labels are characteristic of different ages, and scientists use them as "epigenetic clocks" – objective indicators of cellular aging. However, it is still unclear why these markers are not transmitted to offspring.
The cells of the reproductive line also age over time, but their fusion leads to the appearance of young germ cells. A young organism is formed, which begins to accumulate epigenetic changes again. Therefore, it is assumed that at some point in the process or immediately after fertilization, the cells rejuvenate, completely "zeroing" their biological age. This hypothesis was confirmed by experiments conducted by the team of Professor Vadim Gladyshev of Harvard University. Scientists write about them in an article published in the journal Science Advances (Kerepesi et al., Epigenetic clocks reveal a rejuvenation event during embryogenesis followed by aging).
The authors used an "epigenetic clock" to track the aging of mouse embryo cells. They found that after fertilization and during the first stages of embryo division, their age practically does not change. However, on the 4.5-10.5 th day of development, when the embryo has already been implanted into the uterine wall, the biological age of the cells drops sharply, returning to the "starting point" from where the body will begin a new slow aging path.
What exactly happens during this period is not yet known. It also remains unproven whether human embryos undergo a similar "zeroing" – such experiments with them are prohibited – although, most likely, everything is arranged in a similar way. If scientists figure out how cells rejuvenate in the early stages of development, it may someday allow the creation of epigenetic therapy for complete rejuvenation of the body.
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