An elderly manFLICKR, BLEU MAN
A new study adds fuel to the fire against the notion that a class of proteins called sirtuins can prolong life. The proteins generated significant excitement when earlier studies showed they could increase lifespan in several animal species, but several groups’ inability to repeat the results raised doubts about the finding. The new study, published today (September 21) in Nature, provides the most convincing evidence yet against sirtuins’ role in aging.
“It’s an important paper,” said Brian Kennedy, an aging researcher and President of the Buck Institute for Research on Aging, but it is unlikely to lay the controversy to rest. “The thing we still have to understand—from yeast all the way to mice—is whether enhanced sirtuin activity expands lifespan,” said Kennedy, who was not ...
