IT’S not quite the elixir of life, but researchers may have found a way of keeping us younger for longer. In mice at least, increasing the production of two proteins called p53 and Arf enabled more of the animals to survive to old age while showing fewer signs of ageing.
Since its discovery in 1979, p53 has been a key therapeutic target for cancer research. When activated, it encourages damaged cancer cells to commit suicide – a process called apoptosis. “p53 is the single most important tumour suppressor protein,” says Ander Matheu of the National Institute for Medical Research in…
