Scientists have learned to calculate the age of animals based on blood analysis
[ad_1]
Scientists say they can determine an animal’s exact age and how long it will live by analyzing its blood. This is reported by The New Yorks Time with reference to a study by scientists from the University of California, published in the journal Nature Aging. Until recently, the only reliable way to determine the age of a polar bear was to remove a premolar (front tooth) and examine its growth rings. But now there is a more convenient method called “epigenetic clock”. It is based on a chemical analysis of the predator’s blood and their DNA. Photo: angellodeco/Depositphotos This method has been used not only on polar bears, but also on 185 species of mammals. Scientists put forward a hypothesis that the epigenetic clock starts “ticking” soon after fertilization of the organism. According to its data, it is possible to determine the life expectancy of a particular species or individual animal. “You have a bat, you have a whale — with a completely different ecology — but you can use the same mathematical formula to measure aging,” said researcher Steve Horvath of San Francisco. DNA has so-called methyl groups that attach to it like Christmas lights to a wire. When a cell divides, the DNA in the two new cells usually has the same characteristic pattern of methyl groups. In the 1960s, Soviet scientists noticed that as salmon aged, their DNA became less methylated. A similar pattern was found in other species. Scientists have even identified certain regions of DNA that receive additional methyl groups with age. In 2013, Dr. Horvath taught AI to determine a person’s age based on only 353 points in DNA. The guesses the computer made usually fell within a few years of the person’s chronological age. This is how the epigenetic clock was born. But smoking, obesity and drinking can add years and carry a greater risk of death. In 2023, the scientist completed the epigenetic clock experiment on animal blood samples. He processed the DNA of several hundred species of mammals. To predict their age, a computer has to look at fewer than 1,000 sections of the animals’ DNA. Scientists hope that this new method will help not only to predict the old age of animals, but also to find a method to slow down the aging process. Read also: The remains of a whale, which may be the heaviest animal in history, were discovered in Peru
[ad_2]
Original Source Link
