Researchers have developed a new technique for rejuvenating skin cells, which can reverse the aging process and rewind the biological clock of patients by 30 years.
The new research was conducted at the Babraham Institute, a life sciences research organisation in Cambridge, and the results were published in the journal eLife.
“Excitingly, our method substantially rejuvenated multiple cellular attributes including the transcriptome, which was rejuvenated by around 30 years as measured by a novel transcriptome clock. The epigenome, including H3K9me3 histone methylation levels and the DNA methylation aging clock, was rejuvenated to a similar extent,” the publication’s abstract stated.
In an experiment, the researchers simulated a skin wound, exposing older cells to a concoction of chemicals, and found that the chemicals ‘reprogrammed’ the cells to behave more like youthful cells and removed age-related changes.
Researchers also found that aging indicators in genes associated with diseases were reversed during this method.
The publication noted that the development could stave off the diseases of old age by restoring the functions that have been lost in older cells and rewinding the aging clock by 30 years than previous reprogramming methods without damaging the cells.
According to the publication, the new finding holds great potential for treating aging, which could revolutionise regenerative medicine even though it is still in the early stages.
Researchers also say this cellular therapy could be used to treat a variety of medical conditions and repair damaged cell types for many different diseases. As newer cells produce more collagen, the treatment could help restore brittle bones, heal strained ligaments and tendons, heal skin wounds and provide structure to damaged tissue.
The Babraham Institute, established in 1993, is dedicated to studying the biology of health and aging.
