Girl frozen in time may hold key to ageing

[n2doc]

American scientists are keenly studying the DNA of a 17-year-old girl who still has the body and behaviour of a baby

Brooke Greenberg, then aged 9, with sister Carly who was 6

Scientists are hoping to gain new insights into the mysteries of ageing by sequencing the genome of a 17-year-old girl who has the body and behaviour of a tiny toddler.

Brooke Greenberg is old enough to drive a car and next year will be old enough to vote — but at 16lb in weight and just 30in tall, she is still the size of a one-year-old.

Until recently she had been regarded as a medical oddity but a preliminary study of her DNA has suggested her failure to grow could be linked to defects in the genes that make the rest of humanity grow old.

If confirmed, the research could give scientists a fresh understanding of ageing and even suggest new therapies for diseases linked to old age.

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http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/science/genetics/article7120516.ece

[UndertheOcean]

1. That is amazing ! n/t

[GreenStormCloud]

2. What a horrible illness.

One hopes that some good will come of it due to the research.

[rocktivity]

3. I hope Brooke's sisters won't have a hard time becoming mothers themselves

Not because they may carry Brooke's defective genes, but because their potential husbands or fathers of their children might fear that they carry Brooke's defective genes.

:headbang:
rocktivity

[jberryhill]

4. Cool - Someone is going to make a FORTUNE off this kid

Once they get the patents locked up on this thing, someone is going to make a mint!

[Duer 157099]

5. Here's a pic of her now, at 17

Maybe she's just aging really really REALLY slowly and will live for hundreds of years?

That would sort of be cool if you get social security at 65 and those really are just your teenage years.

[girl gone mad]

6. iirc, she has a lot of other health issues..

not sure that a long life is in the cards for her. :(

[Heywood J]

7. There's some confusion going on in this article.

They seem to be conflating "not aging" with "not growing". It's very possible the child is not growing beyond the size or capacity of a toddler, but that her tissues are aging just as any other person would. This needs to be sorted out.


That said, I'm not convinced that extending the human lifespan beyond small increments would be a good thing, especially if this were the route it took. Better to cure disease and make the most of what we have.