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BOB HIRSHON (host):
A therapy to reverse aging. I’m Bob Hirshon and this is Science Update.
As we age, many of the cells in our body malfunction and produce toxins, contributing to the diseases of old age. In the journal Cell, Erasmus University Medical Center researcher Peter de Keizer and his colleagues report developing an infusion that kills the malfunctioning cells. Elderly mice receiving the treatment got strong and healthy.
PETER DE KEIZER (Erasmus University Medical Center, Netherlands):
So, for instance, we could let them run faster again, they re-grew some of their hair and also their organ function improved. So this I think is quite exciting because it suggests that it might be possible at least to a degree, to reverse aging once it’s already manifested.
HIRSHON:
De Keizer says that while the infusions are designed to target only sick cells, more testing is needed to make sure they don’t attack healthy cells as well. I’m Bob Hirshon, for AAAS, the science society.
Story by Bob Hirshon