Hi guys and gals - new here so please forgive me, however, I found a earlier thread titled "DEVELOPMENT OF AN INNOVATIVE GENE THERAPY METHOD TO CURE MITOCHONDRIAL AGING - "BACKING UP" THE MITOCHONDRIAL GENOME". I tried to bring up the thread but instead it just kept downloading a pdf titled the same. This is what sparked my below comment/conjecture:
I firmly believe that one route to preventing, reversing, or slowing aging revolves around bringing genetic and epigenetic modifications that accrue over time after young adulthood or other similar/proper time which one would agree is the "ideal age", back to their original state at said age. This article is close to that - however obviously regarding mitochondrial changes. Mutations, as we all know, accrue over time, leading to slight changes in the code of our genes, both non-coding and coding, which inevitably also leads to changes in expression due to epigenetic (methylation/etc) changes, which also of course play a role in aging and the eventual development of maladies. After all, the body, and imo life/the Universe is all about balance/homeostasis. DNA-sensing and -repairing enzymes play a key role/factor in this. For example, polymerase and it's respective collection of proteins/RNA/DNA, often contain a component which is for "error-checking" to compare and attempt to catch and correct where the wrong nucleotides are found relative to it's template. I foresee as a possibility, something like this "fact-checking" such as from this protein, comparable ones, or even such as through the modification of DNA-binding proteins, etc. This, coupled with something like CRISPR (which has recently found to be virtually ubiqitious relative to how it's prevelance was at first thought to be), seems like a logical choice for the correction part of this theoretical prevention or reversal of aging. Another option would be PNAs (peptide-nucleic acids) which have shown to be able to complete, at last check with more accuracy relative to the initial versions of the CRISPR protein), could also be used in this correction process.
The above, and most anti-aging methods or attempts I have heard of, make me think of a concept which I think is germaine to basicaly any aattempts at curing or otherwise affecting aging is relates to how each of our opinions of normal is different. Which template is best to use? What is the best isoform for each gene? Do we just want to bring "us back to where we were" as concerns OUR genes or might we opt to use a "better isoform" such as one associated with less susceptibility to disease, etc? Obviously this interplay between isoforms are risk of disease or other developments in it's infancy as "all we know is what we have found thus far". An isoform that reduces your chances of a mental illness may be found tomorrow to also increase the risk of a more life-shortening disease or disorder, etc... food for thought I hope.
Anyone seen any research or other articles which are on par with this concept? Any thoughts, suggestions, counter-claims, etc? Thanks for reading.
