Guest guest Posted November 26, 2007 Report Share Posted November 26, 2007 Hi folks: The BBC report about this notes that the anti-depressant did not further extend the lives of the worms that were already calorically restricted ........ only those that were fully fed. Suggesting that the anti-depressant may be using the same life extension mechanism as CR. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/7106007.stm Rodney. > > A team at the Medical Institute has been giving > antidepressants to roundworms--but wait, please keep reading anyhow. > > It turned out that when the worms--C. elegans, a tiny species often > used in biology experiments--were given the antidepressant mianserin, > they lived about a third longer. > > Why? Were the worms happier? They're only about a millimeter in > length, on average, and they didn't have much to say. But the > researchers-- Petrascheck, Xiaolan Ye and Buck--say the > medication may have the same benefit as caloric restriction, which has > been shown in many species to slow the effects of aging. > > Buck et al have been trying 88,000 different compounds on the > roundworms to see if they can increase longevity; they've found 115 so > far. (http://www.hhmi.org/research/investigators/buck.html) They > report on the effects of mianserin in this week's edition of Nature. > > Most doctors will caution that caloric restriction has not been > clearly proven as a life-lengthener in us humans, but it's drawn > researchers and believers--take a look, for instance, at the website > of The Calorie Restriction Society. Buck's team hopes to find > chemical compounds that have the same effect. > > For now, a strictly non-scientific thought: enjoy Thanksgiving. The > roundworms only live about three weeks anyhow. > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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