Category Archives: Human Longevity

A 125-year life expectancy for human beings? I have zero desire to stick around that long.

Ah, yes, you speak of a debate among scientists over human longevity. I read about it at Business Insider. Some scientists argue that the maximum age humans may live is 115 years, whereas others argue that 125 years is possible.

A 125 years of watching Republicans and Democrats going at it? The heck with that.

Living is rife with challenges, to be sure. But living a long life has its upsides. Wouldnt you want to visit your parents and other family members for a lot more years than most of us are able? Wouldnt you like to see them all at a Sunday dinner several more times than most human beings are able?

Maybe with your family. My family has taken years off of my life!

I see, but wouldnt it be awesome if some of our finest human beings could stick around longer? Don Rickles, one of the greatest entertainers ever, died this year at 91. How great would it be to keep him around for two more decades?

True, but if Rickles were to stick around longer, that means annoying celebrities would stick around, too, and keep yapping at us every time a Republican becomes president.

There are other upsides to a longer life. What if we could keep our greatest minds around longer? Where would the world be if Einstein had another 25 years to unlock the mysteries of the universe?

But what if he figured out ways to extend human life even further, which would require me and the wife to have to keep coming up with new things to bicker about? Who has that kind of energy?

The downsides are a fair point. As people live longer, they could overburden government programs, such as Social Security. Where would we get all the money to support them?

How about we especially extend the lives of the rich so we can take them to the cleaners?

And living is expensive. If you live to 125, how will you pay for your housing and food and everyday expenses?

Thank goodness McDonalds is always hiring, but I for one have no desire to flip burgers at the age of 125.

The costs of medical care are too high for millions now. I imagine that at 125 years of age, ones medical bills would be difficult to manage.

Look, as a middle-aged guy, who is already showing signs of fatigue, here is what I know about living. Life is largely made up of colds, bills, speeding tickets and people who let you down. These experiences are connected together by a series of mundane tasks.

Did anyone tell you how cheerful you can be? Go on.

Well, these drudgeries are occasionally interrupted by a wonderful meal, a really good laugh with friends or a romantic evening with a lovely woman. Then the mundane stuff starts all over again. Who wants 125 years of that?

A lot of people do. The human lifespan has improved significantly in the past few generations. Millions are living healthy lives beyond the age of 80 today, and, when they were younger, few of them expected to live that long. Why not live relatively good lives until 125?

Because then Id really worry about my slacker son.

Why?

Hes 35 years old and still living at home. If we drastically extend lifespans, my wife will have to tell him: Son, youre 100 years old! When are you going to move out of the basement and get a job?

Tom Purcell: can be reached atTom@TomPurcell.com.

See more here:
Living to 125 too much of a good thing | Columns | starbeacon.com - The Star Beacon

Protein associated with longer life helps turn Pinky into the Brain.

Klotho, in ancient Greek mythology, is one of the Fates controlling the span of human destiny tasked as she was with cutting the string that determined the length of a persons life. Klotho is also a naturally occurring hormone in the body. More than two decades ago, Japanese researchers discovered that this hormone plays a role in aging. People with more klotho in their body, tend to live longer and to retain more of their facultiesthat is to stay sharpwell into old age.

There are many elderly people who walk around and have completely normal, sharp vibrant brain function despite the fact that they are much older and the fact that they have a lot of disease toxins in the brain, Dr. Dena Dubal a neurobiologist at the University of California, San Franciscos Memory and Aging Center told Popular Science.

Dubal is the author on a study released today in the journal Cell Reports that looks at what happens to brain function when you inject klotho protein into mice.

Aging researchers like Dubal arent interested in extending life for its own sakethey dont have a Methuselah complexbut rather because aging is the biggest factor for disease. If they can find a way to slow aging, or at least its effects, they might find a way to allow us to avoid the cognitive declines, and diseases such as stroke, heart disease, and diabetes that tend to come as we flip through more pages on the calendar.

A few years ago, we discovered in collaboration with several people that in human populations those people that had higher levels of klotho had better cognitive functions in normal aging, says Dual.

Which is great if you happen to be genetically blessed with higher levels of klotho, less great if youre not.

Earlier studies have looked at the impacts of klotho on longevity and health, including brain health, but they tended to rely on genetically modified mice. The genes of these mice had been modified to allow them to produce more klotho or less.

Those studies found that mice modified to produce more klotho lived longer, which is promising. But despite recent advances, genetically modifying humans is still an ethical minefield away in the future, especially if the modifications are being made to improve wellbeing as opposed to preventing disease. And, genetically altering embryos might help future populations, but it doesnt do much for those of us already living. So, Dubal wanted to see is if mice injected with klothoacting essentially a hormonal supplementwould show cognitive improvements.

The answer, seems to be yes.

To get the result, Dubal and her colleagues injected three types of mice with a portion of the protein. They injected young mice, aged mice, and mice genetically altered to have brains similar to that which we would see in Alzheimers or Parkinsons patients in humans.

Within hours they showed better cognitive function, says Dubal.

Since you cant exactly administer a mouse an IQ test, they assessed brain power based on the mices ability to navigate a series of water mazes, in an experiment that sounds on par with human a trip to Wisconsins famed waterslide park, The Dells.

They found that mice that had daily injections and were better able to navigate the maze (as measured by the distance traveled to find a hidden platform) than their control group peers. In a classic example of work smarter, not harder, the klotho mice were just much more efficient seekers.

We tested them two weeks later in a different cognitive test and they were still smarter, says Dubal, which suggested that getting the klotho protein into their bodies combined with brain training and stimulation had a long-lasting effect in their brain. Because the half-life of the protein is only seven and a half hours long, any of the protein should have been long out of their system.

There are a few caveats.

First, this was an experiment in micenot in humans. While its incredibly promising, the study results are short term and they werent looking for side effects. The pace at which a promising scientific study is turned into a supplement of dubious efficacy is stunning these days, so please dont subject yourself to some back-alley klotho injection. Between resveratrol and superfoods weve been there before.

At the same time, we know that klotho levels can be affected not only by genetics but also by stress. If you want to help your body keep its klotho levels at your own peak you might want to try proven stress reduction techniques like exercise and chilling out about your own impending mortality.

Finally, the researchers arent sure how klotho seems to be generating this effect because the protein is too big to pass from the body into the brain. For a long time, weve studied the brain in isolation from the body with the brain mostly telling the body what to do, and the body acting like a series of censors that give the brain useful data. But this study like our growing understanding of the connection between our microbiome and brain health, and exercise and brain health, this study touches on our growing understanding of how the body connects to the brain to help make the brain more resilient.

Continued here:
An extra dose of this longevity hormone helped make mice smarter - Gears Of Biz

A 125-year life expectancy for human beings? I have zero desire to stick around that long.

Ah, yes, you speak of a debate among scientists over human longevity. I read about it at Business Insider. Some scientists argue that the maximum age humans may live is 115 years, whereas others argue that 125 years is possible.

A hundred and twenty-five years of watching Republicans and Democrats going at it? The heck with that.

Living is rife with challenges, to be sure. But living a long life has its upsides. Wouldnt you want to visit your parents and other family members for a lot more years than most of us are able? Wouldnt you like to see them all at a Sunday dinner several more times than most human beings are able?

Maybe with your family. My family has taken years off of my life!

I see, but wouldnt it be awesome if some of our finest human beings could stick around longer? Don Rickles, one of the greatest entertainers ever, died this year at 91. How great would it be to keep him around for two more decades?

True, but if Rickles were to stick around longer, that means annoying celebrities would stick around, too, and keep yapping at us every time a Republican becomes president.

There are other upsides to a longer life. What if we could keep our greatest minds around longer? Where would the world be if Einstein had another 25 years to unlock the mysteries of the universe?

But what if he figured out ways to extend human life even further, which would require me and the wife to have to keep coming up with new things to bicker about? Who has that kind of energy?

The downsides are a fair point. As people live longer, they could overburden government programs, such as Social Security. Where would we get all the money to support them?

How about we especially extend the lives of the rich so we can take them to the cleaners?

And living is expensive. If you live to 125, how will you pay for your housing and food and everyday expenses?

Thank goodness McDonalds is always hiring, but I for one have no desire to flip burgers at the age of 125.

The costs of medical care are too high for millions now. I imagine that at 125 years of age, ones medical bills would be difficult to manage.

Look, as a middle-aged guy, who is already showing signs of fatigue, here is what I know about living. Life is largely made up of colds, bills, speeding tickets and people who let you down. These experiences are connected together by a series of mundane tasks.

Did anyone tell you how cheerful you can be? Go on.

Well, these drudgeries are occasionally interrupted by a wonderful meal, a really good laugh with friends or a romantic evening with a lovely woman. Then the mundane stuff starts all over again. Who wants 125 years of that?

A lot of people do. The human lifespan has improved significantly in the past few generations. Millions are living healthy lives beyond the age of 80 today, and, when they were younger, few of them expected to live that long. Why not live relatively good lives until 125?

Because then Id really worry about my slacker son.

Why?

Hes 35 years old and still living at home. If we drastically extend lifespans, my wife will have to tell him: Son, youre 100 years old! When are you going to move out of the basement and get a job?

Tom Purcell, author of Misadventures of a 1970s Childhood and Wicked Is the Whiskey, a Sean McClanahan mysterynovel, is a nationally syndicated Pittsburgh Tribune-Review humor columnist. Send email to Tom@TomPurcell.com.

See original here:
Purcell: Living to 125 too much of a good thing? | Online Athens - Online Athens

A 125-year life expectancy for human beings? I have zero desire to stick around that long.

Ah, yes, you speak of a debate among scientists over human longevity. I read about it at Business Insider. Some scientists argue that the maximum age humans may live is 115 years, whereas others argue that 125 years is possible.

A hundred and twenty-five years of watching Republicans and Democrats going at it? The heck with that.

Living is rife with challenges, to be sure. But living a long life has its upsides. Wouldnt you want to visit your parents and other family members for a lot more years than most of us are able? Wouldnt you like to see them all at a Sunday dinner several more times than most human beings are able?

Maybe with your family. My family has taken years off of my life!

I see, but wouldnt it be awesome if some of our finest human beings could stick around longer? Don Rickles, one of the greatest entertainers ever, died this year at 91. How great would it be to keep him around for two more decades?

True, but if Rickles were to stick around longer, that means annoying celebrities would stick around, too, and keep yapping at us every time a Republican becomes president.

There are other upsides to a longer life. What if we could keep our greatest minds around longer? Where would the world be if Einstein had another 25 years to unlock the mysteries of the universe?

But what if he figured out ways to extend human life even further, which would require me and the wife to have to keep coming up with new things to bicker about? Who has that kind of energy?

The downsides are a fair point. As people live longer, they could overburden government programs, such as Social Security. Where would we get all the money to support them?

How about we especially extend the lives of the rich so we can take them to the cleaners?

And living is expensive. If you live to 125, how will you pay for your housing and food and everyday expenses?

Thank goodness McDonalds is always hiring, but I for one have no desire to flip burgers at the age of 125.

The costs of medical care are too high for millions now. I imagine that at 125 years of age, ones medical bills would be difficult to manage.

Look, as a middle-aged guy, who is already showing signs of fatigue, here is what I know about living. Life is largely made up of colds, bills, speeding tickets and people who let you down. These experiences are connected together by a series of mundane tasks.

Did anyone tell you how cheerful you can be? Go on.

Well, these drudgeries are occasionally interrupted by a wonderful meal, a really good laugh with friends or a romantic evening with a lovely woman. Then the mundane stuff starts all over again. Who wants 125 years of that?

A lot of people do. The human lifespan has improved significantly in the past few generations. Millions are living healthy lives beyond the age of 80 today, and, when they were younger, few of them expected to live that long. Why not live relatively good lives until 125?

Because then Id really worry about my slacker son.

Hes 35 years old and still living at home. If we drastically extend lifespans, my wife will have to tell him: Son, youre 100 years old! When are you going to move out of the basement and get a job?

Tom Purcell is a Pittsburgh Tribune-Review humor columnist and is nationally syndicated exclusively by Cagle Cartoons Inc.

Read more from the original source:
Purcell: Living to 125 too much of a good thing? - The Sentinel

A shot of klotho, a hormone associated with longevity, seems to make mice smarter. Klotho is a naturally occurring hormone in the body. More than two decades ago, Japanese researchers discovered that this hormone plays a role in aging. People with more klotho in their body, tend to live longer and to retain more of their facultiesthat is to stay sharpwell into old age.

Researchers injected three types of mice with a portion of the protein. They injected young mice, aged mice, and mice genetically altered to have brains similar to that which we would see in Alzheimers or Parkinsons patients in humans.

Within hours they showed better cognitive function, says Dubal.

Since you cant exactly administer a mouse an IQ test, they assessed brain power based on the mices ability to navigate a series of water mazes, in an experiment that sounds on par with human a trip to Wisconsins famed waterslide park, The Dells.

They found that mice that had daily injections and were better able to navigate the maze (as measured by the distance traveled to find a hidden platform) than their control group peers. In a classic example of work smarter, not harder, the klotho mice were just much more efficient seekers.

We tested them two weeks later in a different cognitive test and they were still smarter, says Dubal, which suggested that getting the klotho protein into their bodies combined with brain training and stimulation had a long-lasting effect in their brain. Because the half-life of the protein is only seven and a half hours long, any of the protein should have been long out of their system.

Cell Reports Peripheral Elevation of a Klotho Fragment Enhances Brain Function and Resilience in Young, Aging, and -Synuclein Transgenic Mice

Highlights

A klotho fragment (KL-F) enhances cognition in young and aging mice KL-F counters deficits in -synuclein mice without altering pathogenic protein levels KL-F induces GluN2B cleavage and increases NMDAR-dependent synaptic plasticity Selective NMDAR blockade of GluN2B subunits abolishes acute KL-F effects

Summary

Cognitive dysfunction and decreased mobility from aging and neurodegenerative conditions, such as Parkinson and Alzheimer diseases, are major biomedical challenges in need of more effective therapies. Increasing brain resilience may represent a new treatment strategy. Klotho, a longevity factor, enhances cognition when genetically and broadly overexpressed in its full, wild-type form over the mouse lifespan. Whether acute klotho treatment can rapidly enhance cognitive and motor functions or induce resilience is a gap in our knowledge of its therapeutic potential. Here, we show that an -klotho protein fragment (KL-F), administered peripherally, surprisingly induced cognitive enhancement and neural resilience despite impermeability to the blood-brain barrier in young, aging, and transgenic -synuclein mice. KL-F treatment induced cleavage of the NMDAR subunit GluN2B and also enhanced NMDAR-dependent synaptic plasticity. GluN2B blockade abolished KL-F-mediated effects. Peripheral KL-F treatment is sufficient to induce neural enhancement and resilience in mice and may prove therapeutic in humans.

Introduction

Cognitive dysfunction and decreased mobility from aging and age-related neurodegenerative conditions such as Alzheimer disease (AD) and Parkinson disease (PD) are major biomedical challenges. Because more effective treatments are needed, and clinical trials targeting putative pathogenic proteins have failed, it is critical to develop alternate or complimentary therapeutic strategies. In light of this urgent medical need for our rapidly aging populations, delaying aging itself or increasing the function and resilience of the brain (Bennett, 2017, McEwen and Morrison, 2013) may represent new treatment strategies.

More here:
Klotho longevity hormone helped make mice smarter - Next Big Future

A 125-year life expectancy for human beings? I have zero desire to stick around that long.

Ah, yes, you speak of a debate among scientists over human longevity. I read about it at Business Insider. Some scientists argue that the maximum age humans may live is 115 years, whereas others argue that 125 years is possible.

A hundred and twenty-five years of watching Republicans and Democrats going at it? The heck with that.

Living is rife with challenges, to be sure. But living a long life has its upsides. Wouldnt you want to visit your parents and other family members for a lot more years than most of us are able? Wouldnt you like to see them all at a Sunday dinner several more times than most human beings are able?

Advertisement

Maybe with your family. My family has taken years off of my life!

I see, but wouldnt it be awesome if some of our finest human beings could stick around longer? Don Rickles, one of the greatest entertainers ever, died this year at 91. How great would it be to keep him around for two more decades?

True, but if Rickles were to stick around longer, that means annoying celebrities would stick around, too, and keep yapping at us every time a Republican becomes president.

There are other upsides to a longer life. What if we could keep our greatest minds around longer? Where would the world be if Einstein had another 25 years to unlock the mysteries of the universe?

But what if he figured out ways to extend human life even further, which would require me and the wife to have to keep coming up with new things to bicker about? Who has that kind of energy?

The downsides are a fair point. As people live longer, they could overburden government programs, such as Social Security. Where would we get all the money to support them?

How about we especially extend the lives of the rich so we can take them to the cleaners?

And living is expensive. If you live to 125, how will you pay for your housing and food and everyday expenses?

Thank goodness McDonalds is always hiring, but I for one have no desire to flip burgers at the age of 125.

The costs of medical care are too high for millions now. I imagine that at 125 years of age, ones medical bills would be difficult to manage.

Look, as a middle-aged guy, who is already showing signs of fatigue, here is what I know about living. Life is largely made up of colds, bills, speeding tickets and people who let you down. These experiences are connected together by a series of mundane tasks.

Did anyone tell you how cheerful you can be? Go on.

Well, these drudgeries are occasionally interrupted by a wonderful meal, a really good laugh with friends or a romantic evening with a lovely woman. Then the mundane stuff starts all over again. Who wants 125 years of that?

A lot of people do. The human lifespan has improved significantly in the past few generations. Millions are living healthy lives beyond the age of 80 today, and, when they were younger, few of them expected to live that long. Why not live relatively good lives until 125?

Because then Id really worry about my slacker son.

Why?

Hes 35 years old and still living at home. If we drastically extend lifespans, my wife will have to tell him: Son, youre 100 years old! When are you going to move out of the basement and get a job?

Tom Purcell is syndicated by Cagle Cartoons Inc. Readers may write to him via email at Tom@TomPurcell.com.

See the original post:
TOM PURCELL: Too much of a good thing? - The Daily Freeman

1091 0 Posted on Aug 08, 2017, 5 a.m.

New study finds that the exceptionally long lifespan of the Greenland shark may provide clues to extending human lifespan.

About Greenland Sharks

Greenland sharks are considered the longest living vertebrates. A team of scientists led by Julius Nielson, a marine biologist from the University of Copenhagen, used radiocarbon dating on 28 Greenland sharks. They established that one of the female sharks was approximately 392 years.

Research Surrounding the Greenland Sharks

The longevity of the Greenland sharks has stirred interest in the research world. Scientists have worked towards identifying the genes responsible for this unique trait.

Could these genes be used to extend the lifespan of human beings? Scientists believe that a successful identification and extraction of the genes could be a major milestone in achieving longevity among human beings.

Researchers at the University of Exeter have studied almost 100 Greenland sharks. They have sequenced their mitochondrial genome. The achievement set an excellent stage for researchers to scrutinize the sequence and understand the reason behind the shark's longevity.

Prof Kim Praebel, the lead scientist of the research, explained why the research is vital. He noted that unraveling the secrets behind the Green shark's longevity may tremendously boost the efforts on the improvement of humans' lifespan.

Why is the Study of Greenland Sharks Important?

Discovery of the genes responsible for longevity in Greenland sharks would be a vital achievement in the research world. It would explain the limited life spans in almost all the vertebrates. Additionally, the discovery would allow the scientists to study whether the genes can be used to prolong the life of the human beings.

The research at the University of Exeter found out that the Greenland sharks swim long distances across the Atlantic Ocean. They discovered that they mate in the deeply hidden fjords of the Arctic. This realization is instrumental in uncovering the negative effects of the activities of human beings on aquatic life. The study of the tissues and the bones of the animal forms genetic data that is crucial in determining when contaminants and chemicals from industries started affecting the marine. The findings would be of considerable benefit to the environment and marine life protection.

The findings of this research have been presented in various forums including the Fisheries Society of the British Isles symposium. The scientists hope that the findings will boost the conservation efforts of the Greenland shark species and other wildlife in the ecosystem.

Excerpt from:
Do Sharks Hold the Secret to Longevity? - Anti Aging News

Klotho, in ancient Greek mythology, is one of the Fates controlling the span of human destiny tasked as she was with cutting the string that determined the length of a persons life. Klotho is also a naturally occurring hormone in the body. More than two decades ago, Japanese researchers discovered that this hormone plays a role in aging. People with more klotho in their body, tend to live longer and to retain more of their facultiesthat is to stay sharpwell into old age.

There are many elderly people who walk around and have completely normal, sharp vibrant brain function despite the fact that they are much older and the fact that they have a lot of disease toxins in the brain, Dr. Dena Dubal a neurobiologist at the University of California, San Franciscos Memory and Aging Center told Popular Science.

Dubal is the author on a study released today in the journal Cell Reports that looks at what happens to brain function when you inject klotho protein into mice.

Aging researchers like Dubal arent interested in extending life for its own sakethey dont have a Methuselah complexbut rather because aging is the biggest factor for disease. If they can find a way to slow aging, or at least its effects, they might find a way to allow us to avoid the cognitive declines, and diseases such as stroke, heart disease, and diabetes that tend to come as we flip through more pages on the calendar.

A few years ago, we discovered in collaboration with several people that in human populations those people that had higher levels of klotho had better cognitive functions in normal aging, says Dual.

Which is great if you happen to be genetically blessed with higher levels of klotho, less great if youre not.

Earlier studies have looked at the impacts of klotho on longevity and health, including brain health, but they tended to rely on genetically modified mice. The genes of these mice had been modified to allow them to produce more klotho or less.

Those studies found that mice modified to produce more klotho lived longer, which is promising. But despite recent advances, genetically modifying humans is still an ethical minefield away in the future, especially if the modifications are being made to improve wellbeing as opposed to preventing disease. And, genetically altering embryos might help future populations, but it doesnt do much for those of us already living. So, Dubal wanted to see is if mice injected with klothoacting essentially a hormonal supplementwould show cognitive improvements.

The answer, seems to be yes.

To get the result, Dubal and her colleagues injected three types of mice with a portion of the protein. They injected young mice, aged mice, and mice genetically altered to have brains similar to that which we would see in Alzheimers or Parkinsons patients in humans.

Within hours they showed better cognitive function, says Dubal.

Since you cant exactly administer a mouse an IQ test, they assessed brain power based on the mices ability to navigate a series of water mazes, in an experiment that sounds on par with human a trip to Wisconsins famed waterslide park, The Dells.

They found that mice that had daily injections and were better able to navigate the maze (as measured by the distance traveled to find a hidden platform) than their control group peers. In a classic example of work smarter, not harder, the klotho mice were just much more efficient seekers.

We tested them two weeks later in a different cognitive test and they were still smarter, says Dubal, which suggested that getting the klotho protein into their bodies combined with brain training and stimulation had a long-lasting effect in their brain. Because the half-life of the protein is only seven and a half hours long, any of the protein should have been long out of their system.

There are a few caveats.

First, this was an experiment in micenot in humans. While its incredibly promising, the study results are short term and they werent looking for side effects. The pace at which a promising scientific study is turned into a supplement of dubious efficacy is stunning these days, so please dont subject yourself to some back-alley klotho injection. Between resveratrol and superfoods weve been there before.

At the same time, we know that klotho levels can be affected not only by genetics - but also by stress. If you want to help your body keep its klotho levels at your own peak you might want to try proven stress reduction techniques like exercise and chilling out about your own impending mortality.

Finally, the researchers arent sure how klotho seems to be generating this effect because the protein is too big to pass from the body into the brain. For a long time, weve studied the brain in isolation from the body with the brain mostly telling the body what to do, and the body acting like a series of censors that give the brain useful data. But this study like our growing understanding of the connection between our microbiome and brain health, and exercise and brain health, this study touches on our growing understanding of how the body connects to the brain to help make the brain more resilient.

Read the original:
An extra dose of this longevity hormone helped make mice smarter ... - Popular Science

Updated 6 hours ago

A 125-year life expectancy for human beings? I have zero desire to stick around that long.

Ah, yes, you speak of a debate among scientists over human longevity. I read about it at Business Insider. Some scientists argue that the maximum age humans may live is 115 years, whereas others argue that 125 years is possible.

A hundred and twenty-five years of watching Republicans and Democrats going at it? The heck with that.

Living is rife with challenges, to be sure. But living a long life has its upsides. Wouldn't you want to visit your parents and other family members for a lot more years than most of us are able? Wouldn't you like to see them all at a Sunday dinner several more times than most human beings are able?

Maybe with your family. My family has taken years off of my life!

I see, but wouldn't it be awesome if some of our finest human beings could stick around longer? Don Rickles, one of the greatest entertainers ever, died this year at 91. How great would it be to keep him around for two more decades?

True, but if Rickles were to stick around longer, that means annoying celebrities would stick around, too, and keep yapping at us every time a Republican becomes president.

There are other upsides to a longer life. What if we could keep our greatest minds around longer? Where would the world be if Einstein had another 25 years to unlock the mysteries of the universe?

But what if he figured out ways to extend human life even further, which would require me and the wife to have to keep coming up with new things to bicker about? Who has that kind of energy?

The downsides are a fair point. As people live longer, they could overburden government programs, such as Social Security. Where would we get all the money to support them?

How about we especially extend the lives of the rich so we can take them to the cleaners?

And living is expensive. If you live to 125, how will you pay for your housing and food and everyday expenses?

Thank goodness McDonald's is always hiring, but I for one have no desire to flip burgers at the age of 125.

The costs of medical care are too high for millions now. I imagine that at 125 years of age, one's medical bills would be difficult to manage.

Look, as a middle-aged guy, who is already showing signs of fatigue, here is what I know about living. Life is largely made up of colds, bills, speeding tickets and people who let you down. These experiences are connected together by a series of mundane tasks.

Did anyone tell you how cheerful you can be? Go on.

Well, these drudgeries are occasionally interrupted by a wonderful meal, a really good laugh with friends or a romantic evening with a lovely woman. Then the mundane stuff starts all over again. Who wants 125 years of that?

A lot of people do. The human life span has improved significantly in the past few generations. Millions are living healthy lives beyond the age of 80 today, and, when they were younger, few of them expected to live that long. Why not live relatively good lives until 125?

Because then I'd really worry about my slacker son.

Why?

He's 35 years old and still living at home. If we drastically extend life spans, my wife will have to tell him: Son, you're 100 years old! When are you going to move out of the basement and get a job?'

Tom Purcell, a freelance writer, lives in Library. His books include Misadventures of a 1970s Childhood and Wicked Is the Whiskey, a Sean McClanahan mystery. Visit him on the web at TomPurcell.com. Email him at: Tom@TomPurcell.com.

More here:
Living to 125: Too much of a good thing? - Tribune-Review

A dish with human embryos.Photograph by Sandy Huffaker Getty Images

As far as groundbreaking developments go, there are few technologies that have captured the life science world's imagination like CRISPR, the gene-editing tool that holds promise in everything from treating sickle cell disease to sussing out appropriate gene targets in the fight against HIV. Now, U.S. scientists have reached a revolutionary new milestone in CRISPR-Cas9 development, successfully modifying embryos to cut out defective genetic code that would have caused an inherited disease.

A study published in the journal Nature on Wednesday outlines the process used by researchers from the Oregon Health & Science University, the Salk Institute for Biological Studies in California, and Korea's Institute for Basic Science.The faulty genetic code that would have caused hypertrophic cardiomyopathy was successfully repaired using CRISPR during the in vitro fertilization process. It wasn't a flawless successthe rate of fixed embryos moved from the naturally expected 50% to 74%. And, to be clear, this isn't the first time that CRISPR has been tested in a non-animal settinglast year, Chinese scientists launched the first known trials in humans .

But the new embryo experiments were striking for both their efficacy and a lack of adverse events like mutations in other parts of the embryos' genomes. "We have demonstrated the possibility to correct mutations in a human embryo in a safe way and with a certain degree of efficiency," said the Salk Institute's Juan Carlos Izpisua Belmonte, who co-authored the Nature study.

The achievement is already drawing some controversy. Bioethicists have previously questioned whether or not modifying embryoseven for the purposes of preventing a disease's spreadcould foster a slippery slope. Editing human embryos with CRISPR should be a long way off, as J. Craig Venter, co-founder of Human Longevity, Inc and a genome expert, put it during Fortune 's second annual Brainstorm Health conference in May. Not something we do next week.

But these embryos weren't actually allowed to develop beyond a few days. And groups like the American Society of Human Genetics mostly center their opposition on modifying embryos for implantation into a human. As for the possibility of "designer babies," CRISPR technology isn't nearly advanced enough to make anything approaching that feasible, as Belmonte explains.

That's part of the reason why the U.S. researchers took up the recommendations of an ethics committee which concluded that "with significant oversight and continued dialogue, the use of gene correction technologies in human embryos for the purpose of answering basic science questions needed to evaluate germline gene correction prior to the use in human models" was acceptable.

This essay appears in today's edition of the Fortune Brainstorm Health Daily. Get it delivered straight to your inbox.

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American Scientists Successfully Edited Faulty Genes In Human Embryos. Is That Ethical? - Fortune