Ancient Heart Disease

Modern CT scans of a variety of mummies from Egypt, Peru, the southwestern United States and the Aleutian Islands revealed about a third suffered from calcification of carotid arteries, demonstrating that age-related heart disease may have been common in ancient peoples even without the modern diet and lifestyle often cited as a contributing factor.

Children of Older Fathers

An analysis of the DNA of young adults finds that the genetic makeup of sperm changes as a man ages, and that children born to older fathers and even older paternal grandfathers appear to inherit this genetic bias for a longer lifespan.

Human Brain Shrinkage Unique

New research shows that the age-related shrinking of the human brain is unique among the primates, with the average human brain losing 15% of its original weight by age 80 for reasons not completely understood, whereas chimp brains do not shrink at all.

Research Reveals Why Hair Turns Gray

Researchers at the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology (FASEB) have discovered the reason that hair turns gray as we age.

Gray hair results from a natural build-up over time of hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂) in hair follicles, essentially bleaching the hair from within. This accumulation is cause by a reduction of a certain enzyme called catalase that breaks down hydrogen peroxide into water and oxygen. Hair follicles cannot repair the damage caused by hydrogen peroxide because of low levels of other enzymes methionine sulfoxide reductase (MSR) A and B that normally serve this function.

At the same time, the high levels of hydrogen peroxide and low levels of MSR A and B also disrupt the formation of the enzyme tyrosinase, which is responsible for the production of the natural pigment melanin. Researchers also speculate that a similar process is responsible for loss of pigment in certain skin conditions such as leukoderma.

These results were published in a recent edition of the FASEB Journal.

Source: ScienceDaily