TWO common drugs have reversed the effects in mice of progeria, a rare genetic disease that causes premature ageing. The drugs have few side effects, so might one day be used to treat children with the disease.
Progeria accelerates ageing from early childhood (above) and is usually fatal before puberty. There is currently no cure. It is caused by gene mutations that disrupt production of a protein called prelamin A, found inside the nuclei of cells. The damaged prelamin A binds to molecular fragments in the body called farnesyls, which in turn bind to the nuclear membrane, causing the…
