Scientists are excited about finding possible answers into how human life can be extended thanks to the Bowhead whales, according to a new study.
Research by Rochester University Scientists in New York found a protein in Bowhead whales, known as CIRBP, that helps elongate a whale’s life span.
The study published in Nature found Bowhead whales have molecules that can help repair damaged DNA, a defence that helps fight cancer.
After researchers mixed in the whale’s version of CIRBP into human cells, it had a big impact of fixing broken DNA more accurately.
The researchers also found it gave fruit flies longer lives.
Research Led, Vera Gorbunova is adamant that the findings could help with a treatment to extend the lives of future generations than the typical life span now.
Bowhead whales can live up to 250 years old and is the longest-lived mammal.
Wellcome Sanger Institute evolutionary geneticist, Dr Alex Cagan, described the whale as ‘It’s a superstar of longevity.’
Research by Rochester University Scientists in New York found a protein in Bowhead whales, known as CIRBP, that helps elongate a whale’s life span. (File image of Bowhead whale)
All living organisms suffer DNA damage over their lifetimes, and their cells work to repair it, but the repairs aren’t always as effective. This can lead to different cancers or tumours forming over time because of mutations building up.
Professor Gorbunova found despite the amount of damage to the whale, it was able to better withstand mutations that can trigger tumours.
Their secret? They found the whales were accumulating fewer cancers because their CIRBP helped to shield them, making them more resilient.
Scientists found that the structure inside the whale’s cells repaired the DNA double helix more efficiently and accurately compared to humans and mice.
This meant the whale’s DNA stayed in better condition for a longer period.
Cagan said the findings were ‘intriguing’, adding: ‘It would be great to see them replicated by another lab just to increase our confidence. But overall, it’s a very compelling result.’ The work ‘points the way towards new therapeutic angles that could be explored’, he said.
Researchers are pointing towards its cold Artic habitat as to why it may live longer. They found CIRBP cells rose when temperatures dropped by only a few degrees.
Their next steps are looking into whether CIRBP — or drugs that activate its production — reliably and safely improves DNA repair in smaller, shorter-lived mammals.
‘There are different ways to improve genome maintenance. Here we learn there is one unique way that evolved in bowhead whales where they dramatically increase the levels of this protein,’ she said. ‘Now we have to see if we can develop strategies to upregulate the same pathway in humans.’
