Introduction

It has been an age-long desire of mankind to circumvent the process of senescence (aging), and as we have seen it to be; the process of reversing aging is not really as easy as it sounds. But has any considerable progress been made so far? Well, that is exactly what this survey is all about; to systematically review the advances that have pointed humankind to the right direction in the process of curing aging. Welcome again to the era of possibilities. And also remember the popular quote by Voltaire:

There is no challenge that can ever withstand the assault of continued thinking. - Voltaire

And this also applies to the process of curing or reversing senescence.

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Understanding Senescence

Some people have; by reason of some gerontological factors; grouped "aging" as a disease. No wonder the term "curing aging" has often been used in lieu of "reversing aging". But as it were, a proper understanding of the process of senescence is actually the first step in the discovery of how to cure it. And the first part is this:

What controls senescence in humans?

No doubt, people have linked aging to genetics, well; which for the major part; they could be right. But a recent study was done, and it was discovered that the hypothalamus (which controls many body functions, and also a signaling pathway) can alter the process of aging.

The research was done with mice, and it was discovered that a particular protein compound; NF-kB (nuclear factor kappa-light-chain-enhancer of activated B cells) also controls the process of aging; like weakening of the muscles, and degeneration in learning abilities.

They discovered that the activation of the NF-kB actually led to the increase in the aging of the mice. And in the same way, when the pathway of the NF-kB was blocked, the aging process became slower, and they lived longer by over 20% more than the control mice.

Also, it was discovered that the activation of the NF-kB (which led to speedy aging) also led to the decline in the GnRH (gonadotropin-releasing hormone), which caused a decline in the growth of new neurons. So by inference, the amount of GnRH is inversely proportional to the activation of NF-kB. Okay let's continue.

On further research, it was discovered that when GnRH is directly injected into the hypothalamus of the mice, it enhanced the generation of neurons, which also reduced the process of aging, and even reversed senescence in older mice. Could this be what the world has been waiting for in the fight against aging?

This brought to reminiscence what my friend usually say; and yes! He is also a proponent of achieving immortality.

I will either live forever, or die while trying. - Obyno

[Image Source: Designed by me @samminator]

Aging and genetics

You are aware that the term "genetic engineering" is not entirely new in this era. But some advances have been made in it. I am sure that some of you must have heard of the Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats (CRISPR - Cas9) which is a powerful gene editing tool, which has also been said to hold the key to the treatment of genetic disorders in humans. 

One of the co-inventors of the CRISPR; Professor George Church (the same scientist that used CRISPR to enhance the process of pig-to-human xenotransplantation), has also said that this gene editing tool has the potential to "cure" aging. In his prediction, he said that he would be able to cure aging before the next six years. According to his words:

Gene therapy is not just for rare genetic disorders, but also for curing aging. - prof George Church

Okay, now people are no longer concerned about how scientists are tweaking the life's code, but the need to do it in the first place. Maybe there could be a justifiable reason to that.

[Image Source: Pixabay]

Genetics and biological immortality

We are aware that one of the challenges of biology is the fact that it is very unpredictable. In the real sense of it, the entire information we need to solve the issue of aging is embedded inside our genome. But just like you know, the genome is not like a book you can open to grab whatever info you require. For the most part of it; it is encrypted, which has not been fully deciphered till now. But that does not overrule the fact that emerging technology could, one day, open humanity up to immortality.

But how close are we to deciphering the secrets that would lead to slower senescence or "no senescence" at all?

Pathway to immortality

There have been speculations by some immortalists that the secret to achieving immortality does not lie in biology, but in Artificial Intelligence, and of course computer. Before you look at this statement objectively, let us consider the fact that; even the field of bioinformatics and genetic engineering still rely on the power of emerging technology. And if this is so, then technology is also remotely linked to the pathway to immortality. And the fact is; as the day passes, we are closer to achieving immortality. At least, we have seen the possibilities of achieving digital immorality (I once made a post on it).

We are just few years away from achieving immortality... and the trials to prolong lifespan is underway. - Francis Collins [paraphrased by me]

Conclusion

The process of aging has been viewed by some as "curable disease". And that has piqued the interest of researchers to look for a way to "cure" this. 

Does Immortality really beckon?

Well, in my opinion; it does not really matter if we live eternally, or how long we live. What matters most is how well we live.

Thanks for reading

References for further reading: Ref1, Ref2, Ref3, Ref4, Ref5

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