A Unified Explanation of Ageing


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=============================== A Unified Explanation of Ageing ===============================

Abstract

Decades of research on the oldest question of mankind, the scientific community was divided by two central dogmas. Once says that ageing is programmed, the other claims ageing is just damage accumulation. However, the truth might be very trivial. Ageing is caused by both by a program and by damage. Hence, in order to reverse ageing, we have to stop this program and to repair the damage. Therefore, we need basic research to illuminate this program and we need SENS, the Strategies for Engineered Negligible Senescence.

To illustrate this, the limits of cell proliferation is clearly programmed, our somatic cells have a determined number of cell duplications they can undergo. This is not just an anti-cancer mechanism; it is to limit our regenerative capacity. Longevity mutants are both protected from cancer and have longer-lifespans. Ageing is not just due to a program. I can also hack of one of my arms with a big sharp axt. This is damage, it disables me and it increases my probability to die (lets assuming a lion is attacking me (or a wolf), I cannot defend so proper any more). I could crash my teeth with a big hammer. All right, that my teeth are not regrowing is because of a program in my genome. In mice, in contrast, teeth are constantly regrowing. However, this "damage" disables me further, as I cannot anymore eat food efficiently as before and it increases my probability to die just as ageing is doing every day, in the morning, in the evening as well as in the night. Year after year, until I die.

By the way that my arm is not regrowing, is due to a program in my genome because it has the building blue print and it did it two times (Yes, I have only two arms. I am not a mutant), the growing thing. Further, several species can regrow appendages, like salamanders. Strangely some of them are stuck in the juvenile state. Maybe I could just induce the gene expression program which is present in my genome, and I could have my arm back again. This would be nice.

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