Scientists at the National Centre for Cardiovascular Research (CNIC) of the Carlos III University, together with members from the University of Zaragoza and the University of Santiago de Compostela, and the Medical Research Council from the UK have recently completed a ground-breaking study on metabolism and the causes of ageing.
The research, the findings of which have been published in an article in the journal Nature, The authors of the study, who have been working on the subject for many years, argue that in order to understand why people age differently, it is necessary to combine our two genomes, the nuclear - which is found in the nucleus of cells, and contains more than 20,000 genes - and the mitochondrial -which is found in mitochondria and consists of 37 human genes.
The study demonstrates, according to the first author of the paper, Dr. Ana Latorre-Pellicer, The interaction between the two genomes “triggers a cellular adaptation that will have repercussions throughout our lives”. And this opens new doors to healthy ageing, through mitochondrial replacement techniquesl technology, or as it is more commonly known, the “children of three genetic parents”which has already been approved for use in the UK.
We hope that these investigations, as stated on the CNIC website, The EU's research and development programme, which is currently under way, will allow the development of mitochondrial replacement techniques, thereby preventing the transmission of disease-causing mitochondrial DNA and thus bringing us closer to healthier ageing.