Researchers have identified a gene, vgll3, that helps build healthy young bodies but also increases the risk of aging and cancer later in life. This discovery provides strong evidence for antagonistic pleiotropy, a long-standing evolutionary theory suggesting genes beneficial in youth can harm us as we age.
The study focused on the African turquoise killifish, which has a naturally short lifespan making it an ideal species to study aging. The researchers used CRISPR gene-editing technology and found that vgll3 allowed fish to grow faster and reach reproductive maturity sooner, but this came with a cost – shorter lives and increased age-related tumors.
The gene affects several biological functions, including cell division, stem cell activity, and DNA repair. Higher levels of cellular activity may help explain why the fish developed more rapidly as younglings while accumulating damage that contributed to disease.
This discovery has implications for human aging and cancer research. The vgll3 gene is also found in humans, so the results could aid scientists in better understanding human development, aging, and age-related diseases. Further studies are needed to determine whether the gene’s early-life benefits can be separated from its harmful effects later in life.
Reference: “An antagonistically pleiotropic gene regulates vertebrate growth, maturity, and lifespan” by Eitan Moses, Marva Bergman, Tehila Atlan, Elizabeth M. L. Duxbury, Roman Franěk, Omer Ben Dor, Henrik von Chrzanowski, Enas R. Abu-Zhayia, Nabieh Ayoub, Shay Kinreich, Ido Ben-Ami, Alexei A. Maklakov and Itamar Harel, Nature Communications.
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Source: https://scitechdaily.com/scientists-discover-a-gene-that-boosts-youth-but-it-comes-with-a-cost